Death and Rebirth
by Darkened Void
Summary: Gohan Son's life crashes to the ground below him when he loses everything that is dear to him. He vows to become a perfect warrior and scholar, but the process changes him to his very core. Starting high school, Gohan undergoes a new adventure when he meets a raven-haired warrior. However, danger looms just over the surface. G/V. *Warning: very dark story* Vegeta997's new account.
1. Prologue: The Death of Gohan Son

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Dragonball Z or any of the characters besides Brota. He is my OC and he is a BAMF. Any argument otherwise will cause immediate and painful destruction of the offender. Have a nice day!

**A/N:** Well… Vegeta 997 is back, just under a different pen name since I got hacked and my stories were deleted. I decided to do a similar story to the two I had before but combined and with a few different twists just for fun. I hope you enjoy!

Death and Rebirth

Prologue: The Death of Gohan Son

Emotionless onyx eyes gazed around the room that he had been given in what he could call his "new home". He had been here for nearly three days, but the fact still had not yet sunk in. His new bed was luxurious, fluffy, had soft sheets, and he hated it with all of his being. It was not his bed. The walls of his new room were no different. They had been painted the deepest color of cerulean that he had ever seen. All the other times the young boy had been in rooms that were painted the same color he had stopped just to gaze at the beautiful hue that used to bring him comfort. Now, however, the color reminded him of nothing but his painful memories, memories he only wished to forget. They were not his walls, the color was not that of his home.

Atop his cherry wood chest of drawers sat an antique mirror whose frame was intricately designed to make stem-like patterns that swirled upward and slightly out. The gold frame made him sick to his stomach. It served only to remind him why he ended up staying in a house he never wanted to be at in the first place. He wanted his tiny, cozy home in the 439 Mountain Area. His eyes slowly scanned the face staring back at him through the mirror.

He looked frail. His skin had become insipid, making him seem years older than he really was. His dark eyes bore the look of a man who had witnessed far too much death and war over long years of life. They were hollow and dead, making him seem just a fraction of a man. His innocence seemed to be long since stolen from him. The black rings under his eyes were a sign to the world that his dreams allowed him no solace even in sleep. Life, it seemed, had left poor Gohan Son, but none, other than himself, could blame him for that.

After scanning his new room for what felt like the hundredth time from the edge of his bed the young Saiyan stared once more out his only window and into West City. Dark, ominous clouds rolled through the sky, lightning flashing every now and again, a fair representation of the boy's torn soul. The streets were quiet and empty. It was a cold Saturday with no sun. The usually busy city seemed as a ghost town, reminding Gohan of the loneliness he now felt.

Rain began to slowly patter down on his window, but he made no visible reaction to it. The half-Saiyan's mind was elsewhere. Memories… Lost in memories was he. Memories of pain, sorrow, and disaster filled his mind's eye and refused to leave no matter how much he begged them to. His eyes, however, masked his sorrow, making the twelve-year-old somehow look as if he were sixty.

The young Saiyan had not been the same since the Cell Games. The loss of his father weighed heavily on his soul. After his two-week-long disappearance it seemed that nothing could bring back the young boy that he had once been. Gohan had wandered the plains trying to make sense of the world around him. Severe dehydration and starvation had nearly killed the boy, putting him one step closer to the release he longed for, but fate had intervened.

Piccolo had been tracking him throughout his journey, watching as the boy slowly destroyed himself. It had been painful for the mentor, but he knew that was what Gohan had needed at the time. He could not understand the boy's loss or the feelings he had been experiencing, but he knew he could not let Gohan's bad decision play out to a bitter end. When the demi-Saiyan finally passed out from exhaustion he took the boy back home.

Gohan awoke two days later to a worried and angry Chichi while he laid in his bed back home, but, instead of being happy he was alive, he continued to wallow in self-pity. Nothing could bring his father back. After that moment he became who he was today, going through the motions of daily life robotically and without emotion. Nothing could bring his radiant smile back to his face. His father was gone forever, using the Earth's safety as his excuse for not returning to his family. He had even missed the warrior's funeral during his two week long journey in the plains. Even though there was no body to bury since he had taken his own to Otherworld, Chichi and the rest of the Z-warriors felt that it was only appropriate to give him a burial fit for a warrior.

The next month, however, brought good news. Gohan was going to be a big brother. The next few weeks that ensued brought both conversations and contemplation about the small family's future.

Over the next few months Gohan began to train again, taking the place of his father as the protector of Earth. His mother, of course, still made him keep up with his studies, but she reluctantly allowed him to do both. She knew she would not be able to stop him from doing what his heart desired. Though she was glad that she had her son back, as were the Z-warriors, Chichi was aware that Gohan was still not the same as he had been, but he was happy again. He was determined to be the best big brother that ever existed.

He was well on his way to attaining his goal until disaster struck.

Gohan sat on his new bed, remembering the chilling feel of the hospital waiting room in West City Hospital. That had only been three days ago. Then he had been happier, warmer. The demi-Saiyan had been brimming with excitement. He had not been allowed to be in the delivery room, but he was still able to feel the energies of both his mother and his soon-to-be brother. The others in the waiting room passed the time by either sleeping, playing cards, shaking in anticipation, or leaning against the wall like a statue.

He remembered sitting there for hours feeling her energy. With every dip his feelings of excitement slowly shifted to feelings of anxiousness. Her energy was fine and so was his brother's, but Gohan could tell that something was wrong.

Saiyan and human eyes had suddenly stopped what they were previously looking at and shot toward the direction of Chichi's delivery room. Gohan remembered the look on everybody's face. Shock, confusion, and hurt covered their faces. Even Vegeta opened his eyes, though he hid whatever he felt. They knew what was happening.

It only took two minutes…

The small family of three was instantly cut down to one.

Letting out a yell of pure pain, Gohan had gone completely insane in that waiting room. It had been the last bit of emotion anybody had seen him visibly show since.

The memories of those nine months ran through his head constantly throughout the day. It had only been three days since that tragic day, but the memories were slowly driving him insane. Each day he had sat on his bed in an almost catatonic state, his body rarely moving in the long hours he was awake. He refused to eat or drink anything. He had not said a word to anybody; he had not looked at anybody who had tried to talk to him.

Knock, knock, knock.

Not even the loud noise of Bulma's fist hitting against his door could stir him.

Click.

"Gohan." Bulma peeked in through the door before she entered the demi-Saiyan's room. The boy did not move an inch as she closed the door behind her. "Gohan?"

Gohan's head flinched half an inch in her direction to let her know he was listening. He still would not look at anybody.

"Good, you're dressed. You don't have to go if you don't want to, you know." Bulma moved to sit down next to Gohan, putting her hand on the boy's back. When Bulma had first met Gohan she had been shocked, but she also had immediately seen him as her nephew…as part of her family. She couldn't stand to see him this way. "I know it's hard, Gohan, but you don't have to go to their funeral. I can stay here with you if you want."

Thick silence invaded the room and threatened not to leave. After a couple minutes Bulma stood up, squeezing Gohan's arm before she made her way to the door of his new room.

"I'm going."

The first words he had spoken in three days. Two simple, raspy words brought hope back to the blue-haired scientist that had taken him into her home out of love.

Bulma's hand paused on its way to the doorknob and she turned her head to look at the boy, hoping that Gohan had recovered, even if only a little. As soon as her eyes caught his form, however, all of those hopes were dashed in an instant. He still sat there staring straight ahead at the wall in front of him, his eyes never changing or showing any amount of emotion.

Even though he was not looking at her she knew he could see her. Nodding, she opened the door and stepped through. "We're leaving in a couple minutes. I'll see you downstairs."

Gohan wordlessly stood up after she had left and walked to the door, pausing to look back into his new room. The white comforter on his bed was stained with blood. He had not realized he had been clenching his hands so hard that the palms were bleeding. Luckily, Bulma had been too preoccupied to notice. As he walked to the closet to find an old shirt to wrap his hands with he was taken back to the moment that he knew would haunt his dreams the rest of his days. Shirt clenched in his left hand, Gohan stared into the darkness of his closet.

XvXvX

**Three days previous… West City Hospital**

They were stopping him. Tears were streaming down his face and his throat was nearly searing with pain from yelling. His mother and brother had just died and they were not letting him go to them. He had to get to them. Did they not understand? He could not let them die, too. It was not fair. He could not lose his entire family.

"Gohan, stop this." Piccolo struggled to keep a hold on Gohan as the boy thrashed in his hold. Chairs splintered as Gohan's power level began to rise. If he did not do something soon the boy would bring down the entire hospital. "Gohan, you're going to kill everybody in this building if you don't stop. You can't bring them back, they are gone!"

His body began to relax and his power level slowly returned to normal, but the boy was still shaking. After a few seconds Piccolo finally released his hold on the Saiyan. Everybody in the waiting room was tense as they watched him. Piccolo, however, was confident that Gohan had finally calmed down and laid a reassuring hand on his pupil's shoulder.

Quicker than anyone could react, Gohan twisted around and landed a harsh uppercut in the Namekian's abdomen and dashed out of the room toward his mother. The surprise blow knocked the wind out of the green alien. A few shocked seconds went by before anybody reacted. All of the humans in the room began to move toward the door when a voice stopped them.

"All of you stay here." The Z-Warriors turned around and looked at Vegeta as he pushed himself off the wall had been leaning on. "If you try to stop him you will get yourselves and every weakling human in this hospital killed. I'll handle this."

All of Gohan's friends stepped away from the door as Vegeta easily transformed into a Super Saiyan and walked out of the door.

Gohan's eyes were wide with panic and temporary insanity, panting as he burst through the doors of the room his mother had been in. His dilated pupils instantly began to shift and scan every inch of the room. He did not care what the others had to say about him not being able to help his mother. They could not understand. She was the last piece of family he had left. He had to help her! They could not understand.

Gohan's eyes met the body of his mother and he felt what was left of his world crash around him. Blood covered the sheets and his brother was lying in a small clear bed for newborns, which was also covered in blood. His mother's skin was pale and her unmoving eyes, which looked directly into his, showed no life in them whatsoever. All was silent to Gohan's ears. He could not hear neither the high pitched tone from the machine that indicated his mother's lifelessness nor the yelling of the medical staff in the room. Two teams of doctors and nurses were attempting to revive their patients. His intrusion had gone unnoticed to all except for the doctors.

"GET AWAY FROM THEM! YOU AR E NOT HELPING!" The young Saiyan felt his blood boil at the sight that met his eyes and he took a shaking step forward.

"How did he get in here?" The doctor trying to revive Gohan's mother looked at the boy with agitation. "Nurses, get him out of here."

One of the nurses working on his brother rushed over to Gohan's side and grabbed his arm, but quickly retracted it when a small bolt of electricity jolted through her body at the contact. Gohan's eyes darted over to the man in anger and began to form a small ball of energy in his hand. He had snapped.

"I told you… to get… the fuck… away from my MOTHER AND BROTHER!" Gohan took one step toward the doctor, drinking in the look of fear on his face as he stared at the glowing ball of light in the young Saiyan's hand.

Gohan's world turned black before his next step made contact with the tiled floor.

XvXvX

"Gohan, we've been waiting downstairs for…" Bulma's words fell short as the image of Gohan's blood pooling on the floor beneath his feet met her eyes. The white t-shirt he had been holding was stained crimson and his entire body was shaking. Three days had only brought him more pain. Shaking her head quickly, Bulma rushed over to the boy's side and knelt down in front of him. "Gohan, what have you done to yourself?"

The boy remained silent.

Bulma grabbed Gohan's hand that was still clenching the blood-stained shirt and tried to pry them open, but she, being human, lacked the strength to do so.

"Gohan, please… open your hands." Bulma grunted with effort as she continued to try to help the demi-Saiyan. "Vegeta, get up here quick! I need your help!"

The blue-haired mother stood up and walked out of the large room, meeting her husband in the doorway. His face was as angry as ever, but she could see the concern hidden within his eyes. He felt her fear before she had ever yelled out for him.

Vegeta had been keeping an eye on Gohan ever since the incident at the hospital. He knew the boy was a loose cannon waiting to fire and that anybody could be his target at any time. The last bit of sanity he still owned was hanging by a mere thread. The proud prince knew better than anybody what it was like to lose his family, but he would not admit such a weakness aloud to anybody. He had gone through many of the same things Gohan was going through and worse. He had barely stayed sane, himself. The Saiyan would not let harm befall his family as a result of Gohan's loss.

"Can you please help me get Gohan's hands open? They need to be wrapped up before we leave for the funeral. I can't do it so get them open while I go grab some bandages."

Without waiting for an answer, Bulma sprinted down the hallway and out of sight to a storage closet. Vegeta turned his gaze to the boy in front of him without a word. Gohan, finally sensing Vegeta, met his stare with cold eyes. The prince of the Saiyan race grunted and quickly glanced at the boys hands and back into Gohan's eyes. He caught the hint and looked down at them, opening them with his palms facing up. Rolling his eyes, Vegeta grabbed a chair from a corner of the room and forced Gohan into it just as Bulma walked back through the door with bandages and disinfectant in hand.

XvXvX

"I still don't see why the boy has to live with us." Vegeta had been arguing for the past two hours while they rode in one of Bulma's roomier jet copters. Both Gohan and Trunks had remained silent through the whole ordeal, the latter of whom was taking a much needed nap. "This is absolutely preposterous. The boy is twelve years old. He should be able to take care of himself in this situation! He survived in the wilderness for a year when he was five years old!"

Bulma's face became red with fury as she gripped the steering handles of the vehicle as hard as she could. They had had this discussion several times over the past few days. Both of the stubborn adults refused to back down to the other. She was amazed she had not tried to kill the man yet as a result of how crazy he made her sometimes. This day, however, took the cake.

"Vegeta, I am not kicking Gohan out onto the curb, and I am perfectly aware that he can take care of himself." The aircraft shuddered slightly as a result of the storm below them, causing Trunks to wake up and look around in confusion. A few slight bumps in the flight later and the small child was laughing with amusement, a complete contrast to all of his surroundings. "I cannot have Gohan not having a place to live. Roshi's place is too crowded as it is, nobody ever really knows where Tien lives, and Yamcha's house is definitely out of the question. Besides, what has he ever done to you?"

"For one, he is a brat. Two, he is Kakarrot's brat. Three, he crushed several of the bones in my body when he transformed into the Oozaru." Vegeta huffed and crossed his arms in annoyance. Everything was annoying him. The weather, his wife, Kakarrot's stupid brat, the fact that he was forced to stop training to attend a funeral he did not want to attend, and even the slow jet copter was wearing on his last nerve. "What about the lookout? He and that green bean are friends. He can live up there with the Namek and his little stooge. Hell, he can help Popo water the freaking flowers for all I care! I do not want him living with me and interrupting my training."

"One, he is not a brat. Gohan is one of the kindest people that I know. Two, I don't care if he's Goku's son, he is staying with us. Three, you were trying to get the Dragonballs and destroy the Earth. You deserved having your bones crushed for that."

Bulma smirked as she looked at her husband in the seat beside her. He should know better than to pick a fight with her. He, just like every other man in the world, would never be able to beat a woman in an argument, much less her.

"Gohan is not going to live on the lookout with Piccolo and Dende. He is the Guardian of Earth and is too busy to have another person up there living with him. We keep him busy enough as it is carting your useless butt up there every time you get hurt training. Plus, Capsule Corp. is big enough that he won't interrupt your training. Gohan is staying with us, and if you say otherwise again I won't fix the gravity chamber the next time you break it and you'll have to eat **my** cooking for a month."

Vegeta's face turned paper white at the thought of having to eat his wife's cooking. That thought, in and of itself, was enough to cause him to have nightmares. He would starve. Grumbling under his breath, the Saiyan Prince nodded his understanding.

The young Saiyan in question could not blame Vegeta for being so angry, it was just in his nature to be so. Gohan had been little more than dumped on his front door step. Sure, Vegeta would never go out of his way to take care of Gohan, but it still did not mean that he would like for his rival's son to be in the same house as him, let alone live with him. He knew that his living at Capsule Corp. would not change anything about Vegeta's day to day, but he hated being a burden on anybody. His mother dying only would make him a burden on anybody else that he lived with. Vegeta was sure to know that, as well. They both understood it, but Gohan knew that if he were to run away then he would only end up burdening Bulma even more than if he were living with her.

Rain was on the horizon in the 439 mountain area. Dark clouds already covered the blue sky as far as the eye could see. It would not be long before his home, and his family's grave site, was covered with water.

XvXvX

Gohan was the last person to step off the jet copter when they had finally landed. He had not wanted to step out of it for obvious reasons, but he knew he had to. He knew that if he did not he would regret that decision for the rest of his life. Why would a child have to bury his own mother and brother? It was not fair, but life seldom was. That was a lesson that both his father and Piccolo had taught him well, both in their own ways.

Bulma, toddler Trunks cooing in her arms, watched with a sad look on her face as Gohan wordlessly walked away from the now capsulized jet copter. His face bore no emotion as he walked toward the tree his mother and brother would soon be buried under. Thunder rumbled deeply in the sky, but none of the people present paid it any mind. It seemed fitting that the Earth would mourn the death of most of the Son family, as well. A strong wind blew Bulma's hair in her face as she sighed and turned toward her husband and mate.

"Is he going to be alright?"

Vegeta did not return the woman's gaze as he continued to stare at the half-breed in question. Silently, he contemplated Bulma's seemingly simple question for what felt like an eternity to the scientist. She wished it were a simple answer, but she knew that in situations such at this, simplicity was merely a delusion. Both Saiyan prince and human heiress were worried for the boy placed under their care. Neither had any idea of what they could possibly do for him. Neither knew how to care for him, and that was what worried them most of all.

"Who knows?" Vegeta's answer caused Bulma's eyes to slightly widen in alarm before they once again became regular size and shifted to stare at the subject of their conversation. "To a Saiyan, family bonds are important even if they do not show that they care. For Gohan, however, his being half human only adds to that sense of familial bonding. He was actually close to his parents. I was not close to my father, but his death affected me for several years, even if those around me did not know it. It is likely that the boy will be driven mad because of his grief. If that happens, I doubt that even I could stop him from destroying everything around him. It is just as likely that he will walk through his entire life just as he is now: a shell of his former self. He would be little more than a body without any emotion other than sadness or anger. That is a feeling I know all too well. It would take a miracle to bring him back to the way he was. I do not believe there is any way we could do such a thing."

The owner of Capsule Corporation sighed, not taking her eyes off of the boy she considered to be another son. "You have turned around from what you once were even if you don't readily show it. Miracles happen, Vegeta."

Looking down, Bulma smiled softly at her son. The fact that her son could live in a peaceful world thanks to Gohan and his sacrifice was proof enough to the woman that miracles did, in fact, occur. She knew what would have happened had it not been for her son's future self coming to warn the Z Warriors of the impending attack by the Androids. "Let's get over there. It's almost time for the ceremony to start.

XvXvX

"We are here today to mourn the death of two individuals that were cherished deeply by those who surrounded them…"

The funeral director continued to speak, but his words were not heard by one Gohan Son. He was still lost in his own thoughts, his own despair. Nothing this man could say would even come close to describing how wonderful his family had been. It was a waste of his time to listen to his prattling.

Gohan looked down as he began to once again clench his hands, reopening the wounds he had given himself earlier that day. Why did he have to be here at this funeral? Why did it have to be his mother and brother; was losing his father not enough? He was a hero, the galaxy's strongest champion. This was not something that was supposed to happen to heroes. They should not have to bury their mother and brother at eleven years old. That sort of thing was supposed to happen when they were much older. Even normal people usually seemed to get that luxury. Blood began to drip onto his suit pants legs as he clenched his teeth, attempting to fight back the incredible anger surfacing from inside him.

"It is not fair that these two were taken so young and in such a way." The old funeral director from the Ox Kingdom turned his eyes solemnly toward the boy affected most by the deaths of the two behind him. He had no family left. He had buried the boy's grandfather not six months ago after he had succumbed to a heart attack due to his large size. "This world is not a fair one where the young bury those close to them who are still young, themselves."

Bulma's eyes swiftly glanced at Gohan's hands before she returned her sad stare to the funeral taking place in front of her. Placing her left hand on his right, Bulma felt his grip loosen and knew he had quickly returned to his stoic state. The half-Saiyan did not want anyone to see the emotions he swore would remain hidden as they started to leak out.

'_Why?'_ Gohan thought to himself as he began to tremble lightly even though he was more relaxed than before. It seemed that his emotions were still unstable at the moment. It was unacceptable to the young Saiyan. _'Why do I still have these emotions? They make me weak. They cloud my judgment. They make me a danger to both myself and those around me. I have to start over, starting now. A new life. I must be strong to protect those around me, but I cannot become attached to them as I was with my mother and brother. It is my job to protect because I have this power. Becoming attached to them will only lead me to abuse my power…just like at the Cell Games. I must become the perfect warrior because I'm sure the next enemy will appear before I know it. There will most likely not be a warning next time like we got with the Androids. I will have to get stronger physically, mentally, and emotionally so I can continue being Earth's protector!'_

Bulma turned her gaze toward the young Saiyan when she felt his arm muscles tense once again. The older woman half expected to see Gohan, at the very least, wearing a look of pain on his face, but was surprised when she saw a look of fierce determination burning in his eyes as he stared at his mother's open casket.

"Would anybody like to come up and say a few words about Chichi and Goten Son?"

Gohan blinked at the mention of his family's name. Out of the corner of his eye he watched as Krillin stood up and walked to the podium at the head of his mother's casket. Gohan's eyes narrowed as Krillin's eyes shifted toward him. He saw the pity in those dark brown eyes. He did not want their pity. He did not want people to get up and talk about his mother. Nobody knew her like he did. He was her son! Nobody **could** know her like he knew her! They should not be up there. The half-Saiyan's body went completely tense as Krillin began to speak.

"First, I would like to start this off by saying that I'm sorry this had to happen, Gohan. It's not fair to you or to your brother that this would happen so soon." Not even looking in the shorter man's direction, Gohan merely closed his eyes in response to the apology. "Now, I knew Chichi almost as long as several of the people here. She was a kind woman, a loving mother, a determined fighter, a good friend, and she was a caring wife. The only things she loved in this world more than Goku were her children. She would have wanted to see Gohan and Goten grow up and give her grandchildren. Chichi will be sorely missed, as will the chance to get to know young Goten. Gohan, if you ever need anything… I speak for all of us when I say we are here for you. No matter what it is, we are here for you."

The white-haired funeral director sighed and stood as Krillin made his way back to his seat. "Would anybody else like to say something?"

Gohan's eyes opened as he listened to the silence around him, watching as his mother and brother were slowly lowered into the ground and the machines supporting the caskets were removed. The only sound breaking through the silence was the heart-chilling sobs coming from those around the half-Saiyan, but he ignored them all, his only focus being on the two now closed caskets in front of him.

"Well, if nobody else has anything to say-"

"I want to say something." Everyone stared in shock as Gohan stood and walked to the podium slowly. It was the first thing any of them had heard him say in either days or since he first arrived at Capsule Corp., depending on who you talked to. Their looks of hope and surprise soon turned to sorrow as they heard Gohan's cold, stoic voice continue on as if he were a doctor explaining a medical procedure. "I want to thank everyone for coming out. My mother would be honored. However, I want the next part of this funeral to be private, so I must ask you all to please leave. Bulma, please stay as well. I wish to speak with you after I am done. Vegeta, you can stay as well, but I wish to speak with your wife privately."

Vegeta stared at the boy in front of him for a few long seconds, wondering what he was planning to do.

It took a few seconds for Gohan's words to register, but once they did loud protests began to emanate from most of the people attending the funeral, resulting in a dull roar in Gohan's ears. Nobody, however, made a move to leave the procession. After about a minute of the arguing with Gohan merely staring emotionlessly at the crowd anger began to rise from the pit of the half-Saiyan's stomach. Did Krillin not just say they would do anything for him? All he asked was this one thing! Other than Bulma, he would never ask anything of them again.

"**LEAVE NOW! I WILL NOT REPEAT MYSELF!**" All chatter instantly ceased as a heavy wind began to blow as a result of the power Gohan was emitting. He had had enough. He was barely hanging on by a thread. As his eyes began to shift between teal and black, all the people at the funeral, besides Bulma, Trunks, and Vegeta, who was staring at him in interest, left in their own personal way.

"VEGETA, DO SOMETHING! HE IS GOING TO DESTROY EVERYTHING!" Bulma had to yell over the intense winds coming from Gohan. Her mate merely rolled his eyes and sneered at her. He could have heard her over the winds even if she had spoken normally.

"Calm down, woman." Vegeta walked casually toward her through the wind and wrapped an arm around her waist in order to stabilize her against Gohan's physical manifestation of raw power. "Watch him. He is hanging on by a thread, but that thread is stronger than it appears at the moment. He is in control of everything. He allowed his anger to come to the forefront so he could avoid arguing and get those annoying humans to leave. It appears to have worked. He will calm down and he will not kill anybody. Look, have you noticed that he still had the presence of mind to place an energy shield around the gravesites so they would remain unharmed?"

Bulma glanced through the wind, squinting her eyes as she did so, and saw that her husband was correct. Gohan was still there. He had not lost himself to insanity yet. She sighed as she continued to watch Gohan fight off from turning into a Super Saiyan, fighting to maintain control of himself.

A few minutes later, the raging half-Saiyan had finally calmed, his power fluctuation making the coming storm begin earlier than it should have. The demi-Saiyan calmly watched as the last person decapsulized his car and sped away into the storm.

Turning around, he stared at the graves of his mother, father, and brother. His mother and brother's graves had yet to be filled, the rain causing the dirt mounds beside the holes to slowly turn into mud. Gohan wanted to be the one to bury them.

Bulma watched from several feet away under her umbrella as Gohan's suit became bathed in mud. Handful after handful of mud, she continued to watch with a frown on her face as Gohan scooped the mud into the new gravesites. She watched as she recognized tears streaming down his face amidst the rain. They were barely discernable. She had no idea that this would be the last time she would see Gohan Son display any emotions whatsoever for several years to come. She had no idea of his plans to destroy his ties to the person he once was for the rest of his life. She would know all too soon, however.

Tears streamed down his face freely as the rain pounding against him soaked him to the core. He did not care that Bulma was standing a few feet away watching him bury his mother and brother. She would not be able to see the tears through the rain. He had hoped that burying his mother himself would help him to achieve closure, but it had only brought him more pain. Memories flitted quickly through his mind of better times.

"I have to do something about this." Gohan mumbled to himself as he continued to shovel mud into the slowly filling holes with his bare hands. "I can't keep living like this. I have to do something about these emotions. I have to become perfect. I must. My role is to protect, but I cannot protect if I feel like I do. I have to die and be reborn anew. I'm sorry, Mother. I'm sorry, Father. I know you would be disappointed, but I have to do this. I have to become a new person. I can no longer be the person you called 'son'. I have to begin anew. I will become the perfect warrior and a perfect scholar. Anything less would bring shame and dishonor to your memory."

For the better part of an hour Gohan worked tirelessly as the tears continued to stream down his face. This would be the last time he would ever allow himself to cry, to show any form of weakness. He had worked at a human's pace to pay homage to bury his mother and brother. He believed that using his powers for such a thing would be an insult to their memory, even if it would have been quicker and more convenient.

He stood up slowly and released a quick bit of energy to remove the mud that stained his clothing and to dry himself off. Gohan continued to use the energy in order for him to stay dry. Walking over to his father's headstone, he knelt in front of it with one hand on top of it and one hand in front of it. His emotionless eyes read over the script engraved in it. He had to be careful when he did this or else he would destroy the small stone.

Concentrating his energy, Gohan slowly etched the symbol of the warrior in his father's headstone and repeated the process on his mother and brother's using the symbols of the scholar and the protector on them, respectively.

'_Father, Mother, Goten… I shall pay my respects to you with my life. I will be committed to becoming these three things that you wanted most from me. I will have to do it my own way, but the outcome is what you wanted. I can no longer be your son by name. I will have to leave all of this in the past the only way I know how. I'm sorry. I will continue to love the three of you, your memory being my strength, along with my determination. I will honor your wishes.'_

Gohan slowly stood to his feet and turned to face Bulma.

"I'm ready."

His face was once again stone cold, and Bulma feared that the boy she once knew was long gone, having aged several decades in the span of nine months. "What did you want to talk to me about, Gohan?"

"I want you to change my last name to Brief and formally adopt me. I don't care about any inheritance. I just want your last name. I cannot continue to live as Gohan Son any longer. I am part of your family now and my name should reflect that. I can gain nothing by living in the past, and keeping my surname as it is now will only cause me to do just that. It is time for me to move on and start a new life."

"Gohan…" Bulma stared at him in silence for a few moments, the only noise in the air was the splashing of the rain against the ground and the sounds of Trunks whimpering in her arm. "Are you sure? Your mother just died. Perhaps you should give yourself some time to move on before you make a decision like that."

"I'm sure, Bulma. This must be done. Today, I start anew."

Gohan spoke no further words before he walked off into the distance where they would ride back to his new home in Capsule Corporation in Bulma's jet copter. The blue-haired scientist watched silently at his retreating figure, knowing that she would have to comply with his wishes.

'_Gohan Son truly did die today. Maybe not in a physical sense, but he has died, never to return to us. Oh, Gohan. I'm so sorry.'_


	2. Ch 1: High School

**Disclaimer:** I don't own DBZ… Wish I did, but I don't.

**A/N: **So, as you can see, this is going to be a pretty dark story. I graduated with a degree in psychology so I love to go through the inner workings of characters. That is what this story is going to focus on: the inner workings of Gohan and bit of Videl when she becomes a more pivotal character in this story. Don't worry, there will be fighting in this story. It wouldn't be DBZ if there wasn't! Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

**Death and Rebirth**

Chapter 1: High School

It had been five and one half years since the funeral in Mount Paoz. Nothing had really changed about Gohan Brief in that long amount of time, other than his name and his physical appearance. He had grown, but he had not shown any emotion other than spouts of anger in the five and one half years he had been living at Capsule Corporation. He was cold toward everybody. Bulma knew that he held a soft spot for herself and for Trunks, who he now saw as his little brother, but he would never show them that side of him. He had grown stronger, thanks to his training, but it had come at costs. He had also continued to be homeschooled because of his spouts of anger. The past year, however, had seen no outbursts from the eldest of the half-Saiyans so Bulma decided that he should attend public high school in Satan City so he could meet some kids his own age. He would stay in one of Bulma's houses that she owned on the outskirts of the city so he would have his privacy. He was too well known in West City to attend school there. The extra attention would only cause trouble for him, and Bulma knew all too well what would happen if that were allowed to occur. Sure, he was well known enough that he was famous wherever he went since he was adopted seemingly out of nowhere by the heiress, but it was decided that the fame that surrounded Hercule in Satan City would provide good enough cover for him that he would be safe from swarming crowds there.

Gohan had grown tremendously in the past years. He now stood slightly taller than his father had been and had bulked up considerably. He was not overly bulky like body builders, but his physical appearance was one that most men would kill for if they had the chance. His shoulders had become broad as well as his chest, and his jawline was much more defined than it had ever been. His nose was still straight as an arrow even though it had been broken multiple times. His once long black hair had been cut extremely short, only leaving a few stubborn spikes on his hairline. He would have looked like a regular teenager if it were not for the scars that riddled his body, the most prominent of them being the one on his left shoulder in the shape of a warped cross and the scar on his face that reached from the middle of the right side of his forehead to his right jawbone. They made him look ruthless, but he wore the scars proudly. The most chilling of his features, however, were his eyes. They were cold, emotionless, and black. He had long since perfected a stoic nature, never letting anything about him reveal his thoughts.

The half-Saiyan stood in front of the mirror in his bathroom scrutinizing his appearance. He was not allowed to wear a fighting gi to school. His eyes narrowed at the blue jeans and black shirt that was tight but did not conform to his skin. At least they covered most of his scars. He did not want his classmates to question him on why he had so many. He had no patience for that type of thing. Gohan believed that he looked ridiculous in such clothes and sighed as he turned away from the mirror. It would do him no good to be agitated about something he had no control over. At least Bulma had not made him wear that ridiculous school outfit. He had flat out refused. He doubted that any of the teenagers at his school wore the damn thing anyway.

His eyes roved over the Orange Star High School badge and slightly cringed. He did not want to wear it. What was the point of it? Its bright colors would only make him stand out in a crowd all the more. The scar on his face did that plenty well enough. With a slight scowl he pocketed the offensive item and walked out of the bathroom and out of his room.

"Gohan, you look adorable!" Bulma had never seen him in normal clothes since he had always been made to wear formal Chinese attire as a child and had always worn a fighting gi since the funeral. The older woman walked up to him and walked around him, admiring his new wardrobe. "You're going to be quite the lady killer with those looks, young man. Before long you will be bringing home a nice girl for me to meet! I don't want grandchildren while I'm still young, though, so you better be waiting on that, young man!"

Gohan looked at his adoptive mother with dull eyes, something she had grown used to over the years even though it still pained her, and snorted slightly. "You have nothing to worry about, Bulma. I'm not interested in girls my age anyway. They are too troublesome, materialistic, and petty."

Bulma frowned slightly, but began smiling once again soon after. "Well that's all good and fine. I'm sure you will find somebody that interests you someday. At the very least, you will be able to make friends your own age. Now, I've had most of your things sent over to my house in Satan City and it should have everything you need there already. Just don't blow it up with your training. If you're going to do heavy training please fly to the plains. I'm letting you stay there so you can have friends over and to socialize. I don't want you partying over there, even though I know that will not be a problem. Also, what you will be learning at that school is what you learned when you were seven so be patient. Having that high school diploma will make it easier for you to get accepted to a good university, so it will be worth it in the end. And, again, do not be showcasing your powers to the other students. You don't want that kind of attention, believe me. I have a hard enough time covering up for Vegeta. Please don't add that much more work for me because you get angry and decide to go super."

"Don't worry, Bulma. I'm in complete control of myself. I won't be going super."

Both people's attention was drawn away from their conversation when they heard a rather large snort coming from one of the many entrances to the living room. Vegeta was standing there with a towel around his shoulders, his spandex ripped in several places as a result of his training. Trunks was standing tall (which was only up to Vegeta's hip), covered in sweat and wearing a slightly worn blue-green gi with a burnt orange sash. No doubt they had left to train in one of the gravity rooms directly after breakfast.

"Che, if you ask me he looks like a complete moron in that getup." Vegeta put his hands on his hips as he tilted his head and smirked cockily. Everyone knew that Gohan was much stronger than Vegeta in every way, something he had proven on many occasions, but the proud prince still continued to taunt the younger Saiyan as if nothing had changed. "That is not the uniform of a warrior. He looks like every other one of those idiots that attend this thing called 'high school'."

"Well for your information, Mr. I know everything, that is the point. Gohan needs to fit in so he can make some friends his own age." Bulma's superior tone caused her mate's eyebrow to begin twitching slightly, but he made no move to act on his annoyance. He had been on her last nerve the past week because of how many times he had broken the gravity room and knew it would get him nowhere fast if he pushed her today. "Gohan can't keep just hanging around here. He should be around kids his own age. Besides, being around you is far more annoying than a bunch of teenagers."

Bulma smirked victoriously as she watched Vegeta turn around and go into the kitchen to get a sports drink while muttering about disrespectful mates.

"Don't worry, Gohan," Trunks said quietly with a quick look toward his adoptive brother. "I think you look really cool."

Gohan gave the smaller boy a slight smile before he quickly reverted back to his stoic mannerisms, something that had not escaped the notice of the other two. It was rare to see Gohan smile in any form, but when he did it was always directed toward the youngest Brief.

"Bulma, I have something that I would like you to make me when you have time." Gohan looked at the woman who was giving him a questioning glance. She always enjoyed making something for Gohan because it was usually a challenge that was not easily performed. Plus, it was nice to work on a project other than a broken gravity room or something for her work. She would do anything to please Gohan, so she would try her hardest to make him anything he asked. "I need you to make me two separate things since it would be nearly impossible to combine the two. I need you to make me a necklace that can create a gravitational field that only affects me and not those that touch me. I need it to go to the highest possible setting you can manage. I would like to be able to continue training even when I'm at school. I also did some research on 18 a few weeks ago and found that her energy hiding components were located in her wrists. I saved the information on your computer in your lab. Could you please make something to go around my wrists that will hide my energy when activated? I have some training I would like to do without Vegeta knowing. If he knew what I was doing he would bother me to the point of insanity."

Bulma smiled brightly as she handed Gohan a watch. "I found that file you saved on my computer and took the liberty of making you something that can do that plus more. I figured you would want to do something like that. Push the green button and it will hide your energy perfectly. I was able to make the technology able to withstand your power, in theory. If it doesn't then I can make something that will. After all that study of energy we did a few years ago it was pretty simple to make. The red button will change your appearance and your clothing. There is a lot of crime in Satan City and I know that your hero senses will constantly be tingling constantly over there. It creates a hologram that covers all of your scars and also replaces your clothes with a black fighting gi and a red sash. It is long sleeved so it will cover the watch and further protect your identity. All you have to do is go super to protect the rest of your identity. I know you can control your power so that you will not kill anybody. You have shown that more than enough times around West City. The watch can take some pretty heavy blows. Vegeta wasn't able to destroy it, but you probably would be able to so be careful to not let it get hit when you train. The blue button will change you back into your normal clothes. As for the necklace that will be difficult. I can do it, but it may take a couple of weeks at the least. If my thinking is correct then I can make the gravity settings far higher than that of the gravity rooms. I haven't told Vegeta I can do that yet because I don't want to spend the extra time redoing the whole damn thing. I'll call you when it is ready."

Gohan looked at her and nodded appreciatively. "I did a little research on it and you should be able to get it to generate about 1000 times Earth's gravity with relative ease since the field of effect will be so small. I need it to be voice activated by my voice, but that is no problem. The hard part will be making the field in such a way that it won't tear my clothes or people and objects that touch me. Also it will be hard to make it so my energy does not make the gyros go crazy. I will be wearing weighted clothing so I will not need to go up to 1000 unless I go Super Saiyan two, not that I will really need to do that unless I am training. All of my research is on your terminal in your office."

"I'll see what I can do, Gohan, and I will let you know. Now get to school before you're late. I love you."

"Yeah, I'll call you later tonight and let you know how my first day was."

"I look forward to it," she replied with a toothy smile as he walked out of the front door and took off to the skies after he made sure nobody was around to see. "I really hope this helps you in some way, Gohan. Please make some friends."

Staring out of one of the windows in her living room toward the sky for a few more seconds, Bulma turned around and walked toward the kitchen to get her cigarettes and a mug of coffee before heading to her lab.

XvXvX

Gohan scowled as he flew high over the streets of Satan City, his special made backpack able to withstand the strain of the high winds blowing against it. Over his years of training his eyesight had increased dramatically. Vegeta had attributed it to the fact that his Saiyan side had become more dominant than his human side over the years and Gohan had not been able to counter that theory. All of his senses had increased dramatically.

He knew all of these streets by heart. Two days ago he had downloaded a map of Satan City on his computer and memorized all of the streets and major landmarks of the city. It had been simple enough to do. He was looking for any crime that might be occurring in the city. He knew of its crime rates. It seemed that in the years since Cell's defeat none of the criminals of the world had been discouraged to give up their law-breaking lives. The statistics had surprised him. Statistically, Satan City was one of the most dangerous places in the world to live. Apparently the world's "champion" had done nothing to sway the violence taking place in his own city, but his daughter was at least making attempts.

Gunfire. He heard it before he saw it and quickly pressed the blue button on his watch and went super as he quickly descended down. His black, long-sleeved fighting gi whipped angrily through the air as he came closer to the ground, his boots not making a noise as he landed in the middle of the group of four thugs shooting at a group of cops and civilians.

"There ain't no way they're gonna be able to stop us, eh Yami?" The smallest of the criminals looked at the largest, not noticing the golden-haired Saiyan behind him.

"I suggest that you all give up right now before you get hurt." His cold voice did nothing to sway the thugs as they looked at him and laughed, turning their fully automatic rifles on him.

"Looks like we got us a prisoner, Boss. Just what we needed!" The large thug named Yami said idiotically and with glee. "You sure are stupid, boy. Coming into the middle of a gunfight. You jus' signed your own death…uh… what's the word I'm looking for?"

"Warrant, Yami, warrant. We needs to get you that hooked on phonics bullshit or something with this money we got." The thug wearing sunglasses shook his head at his comrade's stupidity, but they needed his strength, not his brains.

Gohan's eyes narrowed and he took all of the weapons from the men's hands before they even had a chance to blink and threw them in the air. A ball of yellow energy formed in his right hand as he raised it in the air, still looking at the thugs cower in front of him. Before they had time to even yell four small yellow balls of energy flew from Gohan's outstretched hand and collided with the rifles in midair, blowing them up on impact. Lowering his hand, Gohan let the energy dissipate from it, not bothering to get in a fighting stance as the four men began to run away from him.

"Dis guy is some kinda freak! Let's get outta here while we still can!"

Gohan watched quietly as the four men climbed into a truck and started the engine. He made no move to chase after them.

"Hey, kid, aren't you going to do something about them getting away?" One of the cops yelled, breaking the silence of the entire crowd.

Gohan rolled his eyes at their uselessness before he disappeared from their sight entirely. All of the people present began looking around for him when they saw him appear in front of the truck before it had even gone fifty feet. Without even raring back, Gohan punched a hole in the hood of the truck, completely destroying the engine block. The two crooks that had been in the bed of the truck quickly flew out of it from the force of the blow. Gohan quickly caught them as they flew over his head. He tossed them on the ground and the two men began to grovel at his feet.

"Please, Mr. Gold Fighter, don't kill us. All we wanted was some money! Please don't hurt us! We didn't even hurt anybody!"

Rolling his eyes once more, Gohan held up four fingers. The men in front of him scrambled away from him, scared for their lives. A split second later four small blue rings formed above his fingers and flew at each of the men, two of whom were still in the truck. The rings floated above their heads and expanded before quickly surrounding the men and tightening around their torsos.

"This technique is something I can only use on those significantly weaker than myself. It will drain your energy to the point that it will be impossible for you to do anything other than breathe and keep yourself conscious. The band around you will last for one hour and will disappear, but you will be weak for a few days. You can thank the Demon King Piccolo for that technique while you sit in prison. Be warned… The crime in this city will cease to exist as long as I walk its streets."

With a final look toward the police Gohan disappeared to the top of a building far away and watched as they arrested those responsible for the robbery.

"What happened here?" a teenage girl with raven colored hair asked as she walked up to the scene in front of her. It was the strangest thing she had ever seen. A truck with a large hole in it and four men with a glowing blue band around them that looked like they would pass out at any given moment. "This hardly looks like police work."

One of the cops that had just finished putting a criminal in the back of his squad car turned around and faced Satan City's second greatest hero. "It was the strangest thing I have ever seen, Videl. Some guy around your age with glowing, golden hair, super speed, and super strength came in and wiped the floor with these guys in a few seconds. We couldn't even keep up with his movements, but we did see when he blew up their rifles by shooting yellow glowy lights out of his hand and when he shot the blue bands out of his fingers. Then, all of a sudden, he just disappeared!"

Videl Satan tapped her chin and smirked slightly. It had been a long time since the police had given her anything to investigate and she had just started to get bored. Junior year of high school really wasn't all that much fun, from what she had heard. "You said this guy looked to be about my age right? Well then there is a good chance he goes to my school. What was this guy wearing?"

"Just a black fighting gi, with a red sash, and black boots. He had really smooth skin, too. Looked like he had never been in a fight before. Some kind of tall, glowing gold fighter… had teal eyes too with no pupils. I've never seen anything quite like it."

With a wave of thanks, Videl turned around and walked toward her jet copter to head back to school. _'Well, Mr. Gold Fighter, I'm gonna find out who you are and what you're up to. Nobody comes in and just steals my job. This is gonna be a piece of cake!'_

XvXvX

Looking for the Gold Fighter was, in all actuality, not a piece of cake. Videl had kept her eyes peeled for any person that matched the description of the man who stopped the bank robbery earlier that morning. Nobody had even come close. Sure, there were guys with blonde hair and blue eyes, but they usually weren't muscular at all and they sure weren't glowing. Maybe he had called in sick or something. Hell, she had no idea how a guy like that could disappear without a trace. She only had his description to go by. Not even a name. There was something in that description, though, that reminded Videl of something she had seen before, but she could not remember for the life of her what it was. Perhaps if she saw this Gold Fighter up close then she would be able to remember.

She sighed as she entered her new classroom for the year, her eyes darting around to size up the new faces she hadn't seen the previous terms. Nobody new… That was a bit odd. Usually, they would have at least one new transfer student at the beginning of the year, if not more. With a small smile she walked up four rows to sit between her to best friends: Sharpener Pencil and Erasa Board.

"Hey, Videl, how was your morning?" Erasa asked. Videl had no idea how the girl could be so cheery in the mornings. Sometimes she thought it had to be drugs of some sort. "I heard that you got to the bank right after the mysterious Gold Fighter disappeared."

The girl in question merely rolled her eyes and rested her head in her right hand. "How typical. Rumors are already starting. Yeah, I got there right after he had disappeared. Nobody had been able to take a picture of him. He moved too fast. I don't think he will be around for too long ,though, since he's too afraid to show his face to the cameras. What about you, Sharpener? Did you see or hear anything about him?"

"Nah, me and some guys from the boxing club were working out earlier before school today. I didn't hear anything about him until Erasa told me about it." Sharpener closed his eyes as he leaned back in his chair. Videl should have known better than to question him on anything. The teenage boy was too fixated on boxing to care about much of anything else.

SMACK!

All of the loud babbling in the room immediately stopped when they heard their teacher smack his ruler across his desk. They had heard about this guy. He was strict and liked to use pain as punishments. The horror stories that surrounded this man were legendary in Orange Star High. Rumor had it that Mr. Yasotora had caused a student to bleed to death by the use of a stapler. The only person to doubt that rumor had been Videl. Such a thing was ridiculous.

"Now, today we will be joined by a new student. He made perfect scores on his entrance exams." Mr. Yasotora waved at a person who was obviously standing in the hall and out of their line of sight. "We have here Gohan Brief. I'm sure most of you have heard of him. He has been homeschooled up to this point in his life, but Mrs. Brief wished for him to come here to continue his education. Would you like to tell the class a little bit about yourself, Mr. Brief?"

Gohan turned his dull eyes toward the class, quickly scanning each individual, and shook his head. These people did not need to know anything about him. The media monkeys already knew too much about him as far as he was concerned, even if they had not found out anything of dire importance. He wished he could still be anonymous, but living with Bulma Brief would never allow for that sort of commodity.

"Hey look, Videl, another celebrity in the class. Who would have thought?" Erasa quickly stood up in her seat and waved at the new boy. "Hey, cutie, you can sit over here with us! We have an extra seat right here for you!"

Gohan gritted his teeth slightly as the bubbly blonde girl pointed at the seat next to her as if he were blind. Quickly, he looked around the room to see if there were any seats available near somebody with at least half of a brain, but, sadly, there were none. Narrowing his eyes in annoyance, Gohan walked slowly up the stairs that led him to the dreadful seat he would be forced to sit in for the rest of the year.

"Hi, my name's Erasa!" The overly excitable blonde girl stuck out her hand, which Gohan pointedly ignored, but she did not seem bothered in the least by his lack of attention. "Where are you from, Gohan? Mr. Yasotora said that you were homeschooled all of your life."

"I'm from West City." His answer was short and clipped as he closed his eyes and crossed his arms. The half-Saiyan was trying to give off the impression that he did not wish to speak with her.

"I know that, silly." Erasa smacked him on the shoulder playfully when her eyes widened in shock. After a few seconds she shook her head slightly and put the information she had just received in the back of her mind for later. She could not afford to start drooling over his muscles after just meeting him! "You're a celebrity. How could I not know that you live in West City? Reports have even been made that you are staying in one of Mrs. Brief's houses here in Satan City. I am not behind the times. I meant where are you originally from?"

His eyes narrowed slightly as they never left the chalkboard in front of him. This is exactly why he told Bulma he did not want to come to public school and also why she said he needed to go to attend one. "Don't worry about it. I do not want to talk about it. It's better that you don't know."

"Well then how did you get that scar on your face?"

"Fighting."

Videl's attention was caught when she heard his simple answer and looked at him for the first time since he had come in. He most definitely was a fighter… a damn good fighter. Every part of his body looked tense and on alert, but she could tell that he was completely at ease. His eyes held wisdom and pain along with cold calculation. The small scars that were spread across his arms and the one on his face suggested that he had fought against armed opponents several times during his life. The muscles in his arms were extremely tone and he was built, but not in such a way that would hinder his movement. Where did this guy come from? Videl had known about Gohan Brief from the time he had been adopted by the blue-haired heiress, but she could not recall any fact mentioned about him being a fighter.

"Fighting who?"

"Don't worry about it."

"Are you living here in Satan City?"

"Who knows?"

"Can you tell us anything about yourself other than your name and that you were adopted by Bulma Brief when you were eleven?"

"No."

Erasa rolled her eyes and mumbled something under her breath about "bad boys". Whatever she was talking about, Gohan did not understand. It was probably useless information anyway. "Whatever. Well anyway… That guy over there sleeping is Sharpener and this girl beside me is Videl Satan."

Gohan's eyes twitched in the raven-haired girl's direction and he looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "So you are Hercule Satan's daughter. I've heard of you, but I have never seen a picture of you."

"Yeah, yeah. If you're looking to get an autograph from my father or something through me then you can forget it, bud. I don't do that sort of thing. You'd have to pay money just like all the other people out there." Videl stared down at her notebook as she chewed on the end of her pencil.

"Who said that I wanted anything from that buffoon? I was merely stating a fact."

Gohan turned his expressionless eyes toward Videl and her words were caught in her throat before they ever had a chance to leave her mouth. Those eyes were haunted. He had seen something horrible in his life, if not many horrible things. What could he have seen? The way he spoke of her father hinted that the teenager knew him somehow. What had her father done to be labeled as a fool by this boy? Her father was the man who defeated Cell. Did Gohan know something about Hercule that she did not? Impossible. The man is her father… He could not know something about him she did not.

"What are you hiding, Gohan Brief?" The question was asked more to herself than to him and had been mumbled so low that it had escaped even Erasa's keen hearing.

The teenager in question, however, had heard and quickly turned his stare away from her and toward the blackboard. She would get nothing from him. He had become as cold as stone and he would stay that way. She needn't know a thing.

XvXvX

Gym class… The easiest class of the day for most students was most definitely going to be the hardest for one Gohan Brief. Even when he was controlling his power, he could not bring it all the way down to the level of even an average human. Future Trunks had displayed that ability when he had first come back to them from the future, but he had not had the kind of power then that Gohan currently possessed. For him to be able to lower his power level down to, say, that of Goku before he trained with Master Roshi would be feasible, but not a normal human. How could he appear to be normal? Even when he was the Gold Fighter that morning he had to hold back with nearly everything he had.

"What's wrong, Brief?" Sharpener looked sideways at the teenager beside him. "Don't you have any clothes to fight in? Or have you never done anything like this before?"

"It wouldn't matter if I were wearing a business suit, Sharpener, I could still easily defeat you."

The blonde boxer laughed as he tied a white sash around brown gi pants. He hadn't even bothered to put on a gi top, wearing only an undershirt. Sharpener's laugh continued to annoy Gohan until he had left the dressing room, leaving Gohan to be the only person left inside. He still had a few minutes left before gym class technically started, but the half-Saiyan quickly undressed and changed into a purple fighting gi with a white sash. The white undershirt he wore went down to his wrists so it would hide most of his scars.

Walking out of the changing room a couple minutes later, Gohan looked up at the bleachers that were full of students and decided against sitting anywhere near them. He could see the blonde girl from earlier eying him like she would move to wherever he decided to sit. Turning to his right, Gohan decided to sit underneath the basketball goal and began to meditate. The noise echoing around in the gymnasium was getting on his last nerve and Gohan knew the only way to block out the noise was to fall into a deep meditation just as Piccolo had taught him to do. He was so far in by the time the coach had entered the gym and began to take roll that he did not hear the man call his name.

"Brief, Gohan?" Brown eyes searched for a raised hand from beneath busy, black eyebrows that scrunched when no hand was seen. "Does anybody in this class know a Gohan Brief?"

Sharpener raised his torso from the bleacher behind him and pointed behind the coach. "The nerd is over there. He's been sitting there ever since he came out of the changing room."

Coach Weatherby raised his eyebrows at the strange boy who was sitting cross-legged beneath a basketball goal for a few seconds before he continued to take attendance. From the looks of the boy, it seemed like he was sent another trouble maker, if that scar on his face was anything to go by. It also seemed that Gohan wanted to do his own thing, which was not something that the strict gym teacher would ever allow. Gym was run by his rules, and if a student did not want to follow those simple rules then he or she could show themselves out of the class and not graduate. It was simple, really.

The short and stocky man made his way over to the boy that was still sitting down, apparently meditating. He reached out to touch the teenage boy on the shoulder, but as soon as his hand made contact Gohan shot into a standing position and had his arm twisted in such a way that a simple motion one way or another could destroy his elbow joint. It took Gohan a few seconds to realize who had touched him, but once he did he released his hold on the older man.

"Why the hell did you do that, Brief? You could have snapped my arm in half!" The gym coach stood on his tip toes so he could get in Gohan's face in order to try to intimidate the younger boy, but it obviously was not working. Gohan's eyes never showed any signs of recognition to anything.

"Did nobody ever tell you not to touch or startle a person when he or she is meditating, Coach Weatherby? It could very well be the last thing you ever do. I assume you wish for me to join my classmates in the bleachers now?" The man standing before the young Saiyan was normally unmovable, especially when it came to teenagers. However, something was different about the adolescent male in front of him. There was something in his tone and the look in his eyes that radiated a power that should not be tempted. He did not know that Gohan would never hurt him intentionally or without **real** provocation. He was basing his judgment off of what had just happened and the way the boy was looking at him at the moment.

Gohan watched stoically as Coach Weatherby nodded his agreement and nursed his paining wrist before turning around and slowly making his way up the bleachers to join the rest of his class. The gym teacher stood there in shock for a few moments, looking down at his nearly injured arm in surprise. After a few seconds he mentally shook himself and cleared his throat before turning around to address his class.

"As most of you are aware, we are learning martial arts this semester in honor of our hero, Hercule Satan. The other reason is because of the rising crime rate here in Satan City. We feel that you all should at least learn the basics in order to properly protect yourself. I, myself, know very little martial arts so the school decided to hire out a martial artist to teach you all the basics. We attempted to contract with Mr. Satan, but he is busy promoting his upcoming martial arts tournament around the world at the moment. After much searching we found a man who was willing to fill the post. He is a semi-finalist of the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament and placed well in the 21st and 22nd, as well."

Gohan watched with a slightly raised eyebrow as the doors to the gym opened and short man with black hair and an orange fighting gi walked silently across the gymnasium floor. He was swinging his arms casually as he scanned the crowd, smiling as his eyes met with Gohan's. The half-Saiyan had no idea what the short man was planning, but he knew Krillin was up to something. _'Bulma must have been behind this. They never would have found him, otherwise.' _ Krillin stood in front of the class silently and continued to look at each person individually. The air was tense as the teenagers were trying to decide what to make of the man in front of them. He certainly did not look the part of a martial artist, much less make it so far in the tournaments.

"Krillin, why are you here?" Gohan's deep, monotonous voice broke the silence and all eyes turned to him. For many of them, it was the first time they had heard him speak all day.

"Hey, Gohan… It's good to see you, too, man. What's it been? Three years?" Krillin's sarcastic tone surprised many of the students, but they were even more surprised that the two seemed to know each other and spoke to one another so casually. "Roshi has been complaining that we're having trouble keeping up the utilities and food so my wife made me accept this job when she heard how much the school was offering."

Gohan, apparently satisfied by the answer, gave Krillin a small nod and continued to watch him in the eerie way he was now known for. Krillin smiled slightly at the boy for a few seconds before turning his gaze to the rest of the class.

"Hey, guys. My name is Krillin and I will be your martial arts instructor for this semester. Before you start calling me 'sensei' or 'Mr. Krillin' I'm going to put an end to that. Just call me Krillin. I guess I should tell you a bit about myself. As a teenager I trained under the Turtle Hermit Roshi with Goku Son, the former world champion. I competed in the World Martial Arts Tournaments when it was more competitive and before it got a huge following and I placed well in all of them. I'm married and have a daughter. I don't really practice martial arts too much anymore, just enough to keep me in shape, but I still should know more than enough to teach you guys the basics. Any questions?"

"Wait a minute…" Videl stood up and placed her hands on her hips, giving Krillin her all too famous "investigator glare", which seemingly had little effect on the man, if any at all. "You know **the** Goku Son? He and his group haven't been heard from or seen in sixteen years since the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. Do you know where he is? My father has been talking about having a match with him for several years."

"For the most part, we all prefer to remain anonymous." Krillin looked at Gohan apologetically, but could discern nothing from the Saiyan's body language. He would have to answer this girl's question to keep her from asking more that could out some of the boy's secrets. "That is why we disappeared and haven't competed in the tournament the past few years. We don't want fame and fortune, and the tournament has become too public for our liking. As for Goku… He died fighting Cell six years ago. It wasn't at the games. When Cell was going on his killing sprees he came across Goku and his family. He was placed in a situation where he had to choose between his life and his son's. He sacrificed himself to save his son's life. He may have been able to beat Cell if that had not been the case. He was one of the few people not brought back to life by that strange incident. As for the match… Your father could not win against Goku. Goku Son is in a league of his own. It wouldn't even be a fair fight."

Chatter instantly broke out among the students gathered in the gym. They thought the short man was crazy. After all, who would be so insane to make a claim such as that? Hercule was and always will be the strongest man in existence.

The former monk knew what Hercule had said about his best friend and it angered him to no end. Goku was and still is the definition of a true warrior. He gallantly gave up his own life so that the entire world could survive, and he did so without hesitation on more than one occasion. His last statement had slipped out because of his slight spike of anger. Krillin looked at Gohan and was surprised to see the boy sitting calmly amongst the students as if nothing had happened. Three years ago the half-Saiyan would have blown his top at any mention of Goku or his family. Was he that far gone? Had he become completely emotionless?

"What about you? You don't look very strong." Sharpener smirked as he tossed his hair back lazily, making a few of the girls drool as he flexed his arm to show off his muscles.

"First rule of martial arts: never judge an opponent by his or her physical appearance." Krillin smiled kindly at the class of fifty. He had a lot to teach them and not much time to do so. A little over an hour per day just didn't cut it. "Now, how many of you have at least a basic understanding of martial arts and practice it regularly?"

Krillin's eyes quickly darted around as he counted five hands that shot up and one raise itself slowly.

"Ok, you six, I need you guys to come up here with a partner around the same skill level as yourself and take some basic stances. I will come around and make corrections where they are needed. The rest of you will go and work out with Coach Weatherby. You need to build some endurance before you begin actual training. I would like it if you also worked out a bit on your own so you can last more than thirty minutes in a fight. Pushups, sit-ups, and running laps should be more than enough to build the strength and endurance needed to defend yourself. Who knows, I may even find a few of you that could compete in the tournament with this training."

Eyes widened throughout the student body. Everyone there adored martial arts, but most did not pursue it because they never thought they had a chance to compete or they lacked interest in actually practicing martial arts. However, now they had a master teaching them for free. Perhaps this is what they needed to become ready.

Five minutes later Krillin was walking around the three groups, giving advice on how to better their stances when he stopped beside Videl.

"Hey, Videl. I'm gonna let Gohan teach you and correct you," Krillin whispered, earning a shocked look from the raven-haired girl. He knew Gohan could easily hear him, but the entire class did not need to hear such a thing from him since he was their instructor. "He is a much better martial artist than me. He is a natural, and with his teaching style he could probably teach you better than I ever could."

Krillin left her side without waiting for a response, a small smile on his face. Secretly, he hoped that Gohan and Videl could somewhat bond over this. The Saiyan needed every opportunity he could to bond with someone so he could come out of his emotional shell. The small monk just hoped it would work.

"Show me a stance," Gohan said dully, not bothering to take a stance of his own.

"Aren't you going to get in one of your own, Brief?" Videl crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the boy in front of her. Who did he think he was? Videl was easily the strongest person in the school and he was not even bothering to acknowledge her by taking a stance.

"No. I do not need to. I am easily the strongest person in this room. I have been practicing martial arts alongside masters for over a decade now. I am the teacher. Take a stance."

He stood stock still with his arms crossed in front of him as he blankly watched Videl sink into a defensive stance. She stood sideways to him, her left leg forward and bent slightly and her body weight supported by her right leg. Her left arm was held out in front of her, slightly bent and palm open facing him. Her right hand was fisted and pulled back in front of her chest. It was obvious what her stance was meant for: countering a rush attack. That stance would work against thugs with no formal training, but if she were fighting someone with even adequate skills they could easily use the stance against her.

"Your stance is all wrong." Gohan uncrossed his arms and kept looking at her openings. "Your legs are too spread apart for practicality, your left arm is extended too much and that leaves you extremely open to attack, and it is obvious that once you block your opponent you intend to give a powerful strike to his or her head. It is too obvious to be used against a well-trained opponent."

Videl huffed slightly as her ego took a minor bruise, but she did not move out of her stance. "For your information, I have taken out several trained people with this same stance. It is one of my better defensive countering stances."

"That is because you are significantly more powerful than your opponents. It has nothing to do with your skill or theirs. It is simply a matter of you outclassing them in strength and speed. I have used that same stance with some modifications with little success. It leaves too many openings."

"Care to show me then?"

Gohan did not reply as he lowered his power level as low as it could possibly go. He kept pushing it down to the point that it taxed his body because of the effort he put into restraining it. His energy had become unruly and wild since he fought Cell. He could comfortably restrain his energy to the level King Piccolo had been at, but to go any lower took considerable effort. He was still attempting to master doing so without strain, but it was a long process to undergo since he was constantly getting stronger. It had taken him years to get to the level he was at now.

Without a reply, Gohan began to slowly walk toward her and punched toward her as lightly as he could. Videl caught his fist with her left hand, but was surprised at how quickly he was able to move. Smirking, Videl put her body weight behind her right fist as she launched it at the boy's unprotected stomach. Gohan simply batted away her obvious attack and grabbed her now open right shoulder. Bringing his left knee upward, he stopped before making contact with her stomach. Quickly placing his left leg back on the ground, the Saiyan prodigy made a move to head-butt the younger girl and once again pulled back just before making contact. Videl, still surprised by his skill, was pushed back a few feet. While she was still gaining her balance Gohan charged forward and swept her feet out from underneath her. Videl landed on her back, her eyes widening as Gohan's foot stopped just above her face. She hadn't even been able to see the attack coming. Who was this guy?

"You're dead." Gohan placed his foot back underneath him and watched stoically as Videl climbed back on her feet, breathing slightly heavy from the adrenaline rushing through her system. She had never been defeated so outright before except for the few times her father had allowed her to spar with him.

"How did you do that? How can you move so quickly?"

"As I said before: I have been training for over a decade. Fighting comes naturally to me. Defeating somebody that lacks the experience I do is not hard."

"Hey, punk, I fight tons of crooks all over this town on a daily basis. I probably have a lot more experience than you do." Videl stared at Gohan angrily as she put a finger in his face, but the Saiyan did not move an inch or even flinch from the ire that was pouring off of her.

"You fight those who are significantly weaker than you on a regular basis. I, however, have constantly trained with masters who were as powerful as me or even more so. I have fought to save my own life and those of my friends. I train to protect those around me and to dominate my opponents both mentally and physically because the fighters I face will not hesitate to kill or maim me. You lack that experience. I have stared certain death in the face and came out on top on countless occasions. You face crooks who can barely manage to hold onto a firearm, much less use one properly. You cannot compare to me. Now take what I have to teach you so that you can at least become an… efficient fighter."

The raven-haired girl gaped at the fighter in front of her. He had just emotionlessly bashed her entire form and fighting skill. Nobody ever did that and got away with it, but she could do nothing about it. He was obviously superior to her in every way.

"What do I need to do?"

"Get back into the stance you just used."

Videl did as she was told and watched as Gohan slowly circled her. She hated him… She hated him for outclassing her, for being so dispassionate, for being so strong, she hated him for embarrassing her, but, most of all, she hated him for being right.

"First, let's work on your leg placement." Gohan stood in front of her with his arms crossed, looking as if he were bored out of his mind. "Your right leg is fine where it is at. Your left leg needs to be brought under you quite a bit more, but your right leg can still support your weight. If you needed to hop back quickly then this would allow you to do so. Your left arm needs to be closer to your body. If your opponent has forward momentum then you can catch their fist and direct them in almost any direction you want to. Your right arm needs to be bent at a ninety degree angle and tucked into your side. That will give you more power and less predictability. The obvious weaknesses from this stance are your back and your torso being open, as well as an attack to your legs. A slight, last second shift in your stance can protect your legs. You need to be aware of your stances weaknesses so you can work around them. Do not try to block when an opponent attacks your torso or your back. Dodge the attempt and use the enemy's momentum to strike a critical area. That is how you properly use this form."

Gohan nodded as she slipped into the correct position. "This should allow you more comfort and a better leg base to more easily counter or defend against a trained opponent. Every form will have its weaknesses, but true masters can use weaknesses to his or her advantage."

"Hey, Krillin!" All heads turned to the source of the noise, which just so happened to be Sharpener. "Me and a few of the others have been talking. We want to see how good you are. How do you expect us to take you seriously if we don't even have a demonstration of your strength? After all, you said you don't routinely practice anymore."

The small man smiled as he walked over to Sharpener. "You are exactly right. How silly of me. I will need a partner for this, though."

"I'd be more than happy to-"

"Hey, Gohan!" Sharpener scowled slightly at being interrupted, but he watched the scene in front of him with great interest, as did the rest of the class. "How about we have a small spar here to show these guys who they are learning from? The rest of you get in the stands. Gohan and I have trained together on more than a few occasions. He will be more than enough to challenge me."

Gohan nodded and walked toward the smaller man as the rest of the students took their seat in the bleachers. "We need to keep this visible to their eyes. You should have a slight advantage since lowering my power level this much strains my body."

Krillin smiled as he easily matched Gohan's power level. "I'm sure you will still win. You're a hell of a lot better than I am at this and I'm out of practice. No energy beams, though."

"That much is obvious."

Both fighters smirked as they lowered themselves into stances, Krillin opting for a highly defensive stance and Gohan for an extremely aggressive one.

They did not need a countdown to start. Both knew that the other was prepared to fight. Gohan ran toward his opponent and feigned a punch to his head. Krillin brought both hands in front of his face and smiled when the punch never landed.

Just as his punch was about to land, Gohan flipped over the short man, extending his leg at just the right moment so it would catch him in the back of the head. The class was barely able to keep up with their movements. Even Videl, who prided herself on being fast had difficulty keeping up with their speed. She could tell neither opponent was really giving it their all. They were merely having fun.

Krillin frowned as he lowered himself down to his hands and quickly swept his left leg around. Gohan, who had just landed had his foot hit out from beneath him. As he was falling through the air, Krillin leapt to his feet and sent an elbow toward Gohan's stomach. The Saiyan quickly brought up his hands and caught the blow, and, using the momentum from the attack, threw Krillin over his body and away from him.

Landing on his back, Gohan kicked his legs up and out, using his arms to push himself to his feet as Krillin's foot landed where his head had just been. To most of the students in the crowd, it seemed that the two were evenly matched, but Videl knew that Gohan had the advantage. He was moving slower than he had with her just moments before.

Gohan turned around just in time to catch Krillin's incoming fist and responded by lifting him off the ground and landing a solid knee in the smaller man's gut. Spit flew out of Krillin's mouth from the strength of the blow, but he was far from done. Using his still hurting abdominal muscles, Krillin brought his knee up toward Gohan's now locked elbow. The Saiyan instinctually let go of Krillin and jumped back, lest he suffer an injury to his joint.

Shifting into a defensive stance, Gohan waited for Krillin to make his next move. It only took a few seconds to recover from the monster of a blow the Saiyan had landed, much to the surprise of the class watching. The former monk dashed at his opponent with one hand in front of him and the other clenched beside his hip. The two of them traded punches and kicks, but neither could find an opening. The attacks seemed to be moving at a snail's pace to the two hardened warriors, but with their limited energy supply they could not move too quickly and without their normal energy hardening their muscles each blow landed still hurt. After a few seconds of what seemed like a stalemate between the two Krillin finally found his opening. He dodged a punch that left Gohan overextended due to his being taller than Krillin. The short man smirked as he watched Gohan's other fist rear in an attempt to force him back.

The former Turtle Hermit student turned master quickly jumped and used his hard skull to bash Gohan in the jaw. The powerful spin he had incorporated into the jump allowed him to lash out with his right leg and send a powerful kick into Gohan's left side before he could recover, forcing him to leap to the side before Krillin could send more attacks his way.

Gohan ignored the pain in his jaw and his side as he rushed his opponent with his hands at his side. Krillin's eyebrow shot up, wondering what the teenager was planning, but he still fell for the bait. The monk threw out his right fist in an attempt to land a swift punch to the boy's face, but Gohan easily dodged the incoming punch and fell backwards onto his hands. Using some of his energy, Gohan's lower body became a spring and both of his feet found their home in Krillin's gut. As the shorter man flew back Gohan deftly bent his knees and rose to his feet. Krillin's already sore stomach took major damage because of the energy behind the ruthless attack, but Gohan only watched dispassionately as his elder wiped blood that was leaking out of his mouth and started retching slightly from the impact.

"Gohan, what the hell?!" The boy in question watched emotionlessly as Videl stood up and ran down the bleachers to Krillin's side, who was still trying to recover from Gohan's attack. "You didn't have to hit him that hard! It was only a spar. There was no need to attack like that! Are you okay, Krillin?"

"I'm fine. I've had much worse than this." Krillin coughed lightly as he stood up, a small bit of blood coming up with it, causing Videl to glare harder at Gohan than she had previously. After a couple of minutes he turned to the class. "So, I suppose that everybody can see that I am more than capable of teaching you guys martial arts, even though I lost. And before everybody asks, yes, Gohan is much better than I am. I have been doing this longer, but Gohan has more natural talent and has had a more rigorous training regimen than me. That is why I'm going to have Gohan help me teach this class. It will be easier that way. There is no point in having him go over everything he learned when he was a boy."

"What about Videl? She is one of the strongest humans alive right now and she's really good at fighting!" Erasa smiled, hoping that Videl would also be able to teach the class.

Krillin looked at Gohan questioningly. "Well, what do you think? You saw her more than I did. I was focusing mostly on Toshiro."

"Videl still has a lot to learn even though she is well above the standards of a normal person." Gohan looked toward the girl and saw that she was steaming with anger. It made no bit of difference to him. "She will participate in the class along with the rest of you. Krillin and I will teach you the basics of martial arts and things that will actually be of use to you. We are not here to show you flashy techniques like the ones used in Hercule's gym. What we teach you will only be practical techniques."

"So you're saying my father's technique isn't practical?" Videl stomped over to Gohan and shoved her finger in his face. "I'll have you know that my father is the strongest man alive! He is the person that defeated Cell and is the world champ! His moves may be flashy, but even your _practical_ techniques could not touch him in a fight."

"Alright, kids, that's enough." Krillin looked at Videl and then looked at the bleachers. With a roll of her eyes, she huffed and walked angrily back toward the bleachers. "I think that is enough for one day. We will continue our lessons tomorrow and in a couple of weeks we may be ready to start some sparring, if your parents will allow it. I will have Mr. Weatherby print off some release forms to give you tomorrow to take home to your parents."

XvXvX

It was the end of Gohan's first day of school and he could not have been more relieved. After Gohan's spar with Krillin word had quickly gotten out about Gohan's prowess in martial arts and his popularity rose more quickly than he had thought possible. Every club pertaining to some form of martial arts had cornered him and attempted to recruit him to their team. Naturally, he declined all of their invitations. He did not have the time to worry about silly clubs like wrestling or boxing. Plus, it would not have even been a challenge to him.

Gohan walked out of the front door, a sigh escaping his lips. It felt good to be outside again, even if he was in the city. He continued to walk and ignored the calls from the people around him. He hoped that the popularity would die down soon or else he would be in for a long semester. He just wanted to get home and train in the gravity chamber that Bulma had installed in her home away from home. He would have to call Bulma first, though. No doubt she would want all of the details of his first day of school.

"HEY, BRIEF, WAIT UP!"

Gohan kept walking at the same pace and ignored whoever it was calling out to him. It was probably the martial arts club attempting to recruit him again. They had tried several times. It was starting to get on his last nerve. He needed to get home soon. Fighting crime would have to wait for another day. If he fought while agitated like he was he would end up killing somebody by accident and that was something he would not stand for, even if they were causing harm to other people.

"Hey!"

A hand on his shoulder forced him to turn around and he was a bit surprised to see a pair of cerulean eyes looking up at him angrily.

"I told you to wait up."

"And I'm in a hurry to get home. What do you want?"

Gohan crossed his arms as he looked at the watch on his left wrist.

"You said that I have a lot to learn." Videl looked down at the ground when she saw him nod at her statement. It bruised her pride to speak about it, but she had to do something. She had to catch up to Gohan, but most of all she wanted to prove to her father that she was strong. "I thought about it since gym and you were right… about everything you said. But I also realized that I can't get there alone. My father doesn't have the time to train me and Krillin has his own family. I was wondering if you could train me to fight like you do."

"No."

Videl's mouth opened in shock as he quickly and calmly delivered his answer, but no words came out. How could he outright turn her down like that? How could he be so callous while delivering his answer?

"Why?"

Gohan's expression did not change as he delivered his answer. "You would question everything I teach you. Your opinions would get in the way of learning what I have to offer. You are too narrow-minded. You are not strong enough. There is a great possibility that you would become seriously injured as a result of the training. It would be a waste of my time. You have potential, but your own opinions and narrow-mindedness seriously limit your abilities. Even the advanced techniques you use are basic in my eyes. If your wish is to catch up to me and surpass me then that is an impossible goal. The power I showed you today is only a small portion of what I can do. I cannot teach you what I know."

The stoic teenager turned around and started walking down the sidewalk once again. He hated revealing that he was stronger than what she had seen, but he knew that she only wanted him to train her so she could surpass him. If she thought that goal could not be obtained then she would most likely leave him alone. Plus, her pride would not allow her to tell a living soul that he was more powerful than she could ever be. It was a win-win situation for Gohan.

"I will do whatever you ask me to do." Gohan stopped and turned around. Surprise shot through his body when he saw the determination in her eyes. "I don't care if I can't catch up to you. I just need to get stronger. I want to learn. I will not question. I will follow your guidance. I will set my pride aside. I will not tell anybody about you. I can tell you are a secretive person. Nobody will know you are training me. I will keep an open mind. I will prove to you that I am strong enough to take any training you give me. I want to prove to myself that I can go beyond my limits. I want my father to see how strong I can be. Please, Gohan… reconsider. As much as I hate to admit it, I need a mentor. You are the only person I can go to that can take me beyond my limits. Please, teach me what you know!"

'_Perhaps she can learn.'_ Gohan looked at her dispassionately. He had never seen a human with such resolve outside of the Z Fighters. If this resolve carried over into her training then perhaps her potential could be met. If she got stronger then she could protect the people of the city after he left, and it would also allow more time for him to train himself while he was in school. If she could not endure his training then he would lose nothing but a bit of his time. Hell, if it benefitted the people he would do it.

"The news said your father will be travelling around the world for the next two weeks. Your training starts tomorrow. I still need to get settled into my place. I live just down the street from you in Bulma's private business home here in Satan City. Bring a pair of padded gloves after school. When you are not doing homework you will be training. When you are not out protecting the city you will be training. I will not teach you nicely. I will teach you in a similar fashion to how I was taught, with a few adjustments. You will not stay at my house, no matter the circumstance. Each night you will return to your home. Do you have any complaints about my rules?"

"No."

"Fine. If you are late for any reason barring fighting crime then I will not train you. I do not waste time. Prepare yourself tonight because tomorrow you will be in for the worst pain of your life."

XnXnX

**A/N:** Well, guys. I'm sorry about the long wait. I have no excuse. However, I would like to know what you think of my badass Gohan. People who read generally like him, haha. I hope to see what you guys think about it in a review! Thanks for reading!


	3. Ch 2: Welcome to Your Nightmare

**Disclaimer:** Don't own it. Don't own "Nightmare" by Avenged Sevenfold.

**A/N:** Remember, this is an AU… Things in the past may have happened differently for Gohan than was canon, but the outcome is still the same. I just want to make DBZ a bit more adult and on the dark side for the purposes of this story. The title of this story was inspired by the song "Nightmare" by Avenged Sevenfold.

I would also like to thank all of the wonderful reviewers to this story! I know that traffic through the DBZ fandom has slowed over the years so I did not expect so many responses to my work! You are keeping my hope alive that DBZ fanfics will one day again be as popular as they once were!

**WARNING:** The first bit of this chapter is extremely violent and graphic. If you have a weak stomach do not read it.

**Death and Rebirth**

Chapter 2: Welcome to Your Nightmare

"GOHAN, END THIS NOW! JUST FINISH HIM!"

Gohan stood eleven years old once more, his hair standing tall and gold with electricity wrapped around his body. His aura shot out around his seemingly Kami-like from in a sort of controlled chaos as he looked down at his victim with pure hatred in his eyes. He had never seen a creature so vile and disgusting before. Never had he seen something so pathetic. Just seeing the creature's face made his insides twist with anger. He remembered his friends being beaten like they were mere pests, like they meant nothing to anybody. It deserved the pain it was in. It deserved to be tortured, physically and mentally…just as he had been just moments ago. Gohan did not want the thing to feel the pain he had felt…he needed it to feel what he had felt.

The creature was on all fours at Gohan's feet, writhing in pain and mumbling incoherently. Its eyes were closed as it tried to understand the situation it was in and how to find a way out of it. Its mind was racing and for the first time in its existence it knew true fear. It feared for its life. It had been foolish when it attempted to goad Gohan into releasing his true power. It looked up and saw a face that showed no semblance of mercy. Pure killing intent radiated off the young boy in front of him. Cell wanted to look away, but quickly found that it could not.

"You…you are a monster! I should have killed you when I had the chance!" Its deep voice echoed throughout the canyon. Cell was once again in its imperfect form. Its body was beaten and its energy was running low.

"GOHAN! THAT'S ENOUGH! IT'S TIME TO END HIM!"

Gohan looked up at his father and his frown deepened. His anger grew even higher than it had been before. He did not understand. He did not want to stop…he could not stop until the beast inside of him had been satiated. The beast's hunger for vengeance and blood was rampant. This was not even close to being done.

"No." Gohan met his father's shocked eyes and smirked slightly. "He does not deserve an easy out. I am not done yet. Don't try to interfere. I will stop you. He deserves to feel the pain that he has caused to thousands of people. He needs to know fear before he dies. He will be crippled by the time I am done with him. I will bring him to justice in my own way."

"Gohan… What have you become?" Piccolo looked down at his former pupil and frowned. His black eyes showed worry that was only apparent when something was wrong with Gohan. Looking at Goku, he was surprised to see the man shaking with anger. "Goku, don't step in. There is nothing we can do. Gohan was serious when he said he would fight us. We just have to hope that Cell can't pull a trick."

The Z Warriors watched on in horror as Gohan continued to beat Cell further and further into submission. They had never seen the boy act so callously. He could no longer feel anything other than unadulterated rage. He had acted on such emotions before, but he had never purposely tortured his target.

Gohan stomped down on Cell's face as it laid on its back trying to recover from the onslaught that had been unleashed on his body. Its gargled scream was barely audible as its lower mandible was completely dislocated and shattered. Purple blood flowed freely from its mouth as it looked up at the half-Saiyan in terror. Its eyes widened as Gohan lifted his hand and incinerated both of its hands and feet. It could barely move. The pain it was feeling was paralyzing.

The young Saiyan warrior smiled as he walked behind Cell's head and picked raised it into a sitting position by its shoulders. Readjusting his grip to Cell's hips he stood the android on its bloody nubs and let all its weight rest on them, only holding onto Cell to keep its balance.

"Walk."

"…Guurghh…"

"I said…WALK, YOU MOTHERFUCKER!" Gohan smiled sadistically as the creature in his grips took a hesitant step forward and let out a gargled moan of pain. After a few more steps Gohan pushed Gero's greatest creation to the ground forcefully.

Cell lay on its stomach, taking short and shallow breaths as it tried to recover some of its lost energy. It listened as Gohan began to walk forward slowly and stopped as he reached it. Raring his leg back, Gohan kicked Cell just hard enough in the torso that it would flip over and face up. His sadistic smile never left his face as he stood over the creature and repeatedly stomped all over its body. After Cell's body resembled nothing but a mangled green blob he finally stopped and looked down without pity at the creature that had once called itself "perfect".

"You said you were perfect, Cell… That you could be rivaled by no other being in the universe." Gohan let out another kick at the area android's head was located. "You were wrong. I was more than enough to beat you. Now regenerate so I can finish this and look into your eyes as you die by my hand. I know you have just enough energy to at least recover from this. Do it quickly. I don't have time for you anymore."

Cell smirked slightly as its body began to bubble, constantly constricting and expanding. Gohan frowned as he watched the android regenerate its body. It was finally over. Cell would face death by his hands and he could live in peace once again. Rage slowly left Gohan's body and mind as he imagined a world where he could be happy and be a somewhat normal boy again with his family. Heck, maybe he would even get a little brother or sister to play with someday. He knew his parents had talked about it, but had decided to wait until after the Cell Games were over.

"It is over, Gohan." The boy snapped back to attention as he looked at the now standing Cell who was smirking victoriously. Before the Saiyan could even take a step forward Cell's body began to enlarge at an alarming rate. "I cannot beat you using my fists, but I can still outsmart you, you stupid little brat! Dr. Gero implanted a self-destruct sequence in my body that can gather more than enough energy to blow up this pathetic planet. It may not kill you, but you will suffocate in space! Any blow to my body at this point will set off the explosion. You have one minute left to enjoy your pathetic life! I am going to take you to hell with me!"

Gohan fell to his knees in shock and despair as Cell grew to the size of a full grown elephant. Its maniacal laughter rang through his ears as he realized his failure. If only he had listened to his father. This could have all been avoided. He had had the power to defeat Cell and save the planet, but he failed. Because of him…everything would be wiped out of existence. He would never know the joy of having a semi-normal life. He would never again get to laugh with his mother or enjoy her home-cooked meals. He had killed them all. Their blood would be on his hands. He was a murderer. The next time he saw Cell, it would be in hell.

"IT IS OVER, GOHAN SON! YOU HAVE BEEN DEFEATED BY ME! THERE IS NOTHING YOU OR ANYONE ELSE CAN DO TO STOP ME!"

"!"

Gohan looked up when he felt his father's energy come closer to him. Shock covered his face when he saw Goku holding two fingers up to his forehead and his other hand touching Cell's engorged stomach. He could not do this! He could not sacrifice himself! It would be his fault! Gohan stood to his feet and stepped forward.

"I love you, son. I am proud of you, but I have to take it from here." His kind words stopped Gohan in his tracks.

Goku Son and Cell disappeared without a trace. Gohan could only stand with his hand raised at the thin air before he fell to his knees once again and transformed back to his base form.

He did not even register Piccolo's energy beside him. He was still in shock. His father was somewhere and had just died. The Earth's savior and one of its most pure souls had once again died to save humanity, and he could have prevented everything. It was all his fault.

"Gohan," Piccolo whispered as he laid his hand on the boy's shoulder, "It's over now. We can wish Goku back to life with the new Dragonballs. Let's go home."

"It's my fault." Gohan looked up at his mentor with tears streaming down freely from his eyes. He had never felt an emotional pain as strong as he was feeling now. "I should have killed him when I had the chance. Dad would still be alive if it were not for me. It's my fault, Piccolo. It's my fault. I was so stupid…so arrogant. I sentenced my father to death. His blood is on my hands."

"Gohan, there is no point in thinking like that." Piccolo turned to walk away and looked back at the boy who was still on his knees. "Let's go home, Gohan."

The boy stood to his feet and began to follow a few paces behind Piccolo before he stopped suddenly.

'_No. It can't be. He's back.'_

Blood spewed from Gohan's mouth as a pink beam of energy pierced through the middle of his gut. He fell slowly to the ground and looked as a yellow pair of feet stood above him. He heard the laughter. It was taunting him. It had gained its perfect powers again and was more powerful than ever. Gohan tried to move his legs, but he could not feel them.

"Thankfully, Dr. Gero gave me information on human anatomy." Gohan watched in horror as the creature standing above him flexed its hand. He felt cold, laying there on the ground with his warm blood slowly pooling underneath him. "You won't be able to use your energy or move your legs at all. I severed your spinal cord. Now you can watch as I kill your friends one by one before I finally kill you."

"Cell… I… will kill you." Gohan coughed and specs of blood stained the sand in front of him. "You will not… get away… with this."

Cell laughed as it walked away from the fallen warrior. "Don't speak now, Gohan. Save your energy so you can live and watch as all those you care about die before your very eyes. I don't want you to miss a single thing."

Cell disappeared from everyone's sight. The Z Fighters looked around in panic for a few seconds before a sickening scream flew through the air. All of them looked toward Trunks and saw the most horrible sight they had ever seen.

The sadistic android was standing behind Trunks wearing a sick smile, its arm protruding out of the young Saiyan's chest from behind, his heart held in Cell's hand. Trunks watched in pain while the creature crushed his heart, the blood still trapped inside painting itself across Trunks' face. The time traveler fell to his knees, dropping back to base form during his descent, after the monster ripped its arm out of Trunks' chest. He was dead before his face even hit the dirt.

The Z Fighters watch on in shock as Cell disappeared once again. It seemed like its energy was in multiple places at once. Five separate Cells reappeared in a circle around Vegeta.

"Now, Vegeta, you will die by your rival's signature move!" The five Cells dropped into a stance with their hands cupped at their hips. "KAMEHAMEHA!"

The five blue beams hit Vegeta simultaneously. His scream of pain was heard as his body was slowly ripped apart by the powerful beams. It only took a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity to his allies. Vegeta's scream was heard no more.

"Please… Cell… just kill me… please… stop. They have done…nothing."

His plea fell on deaf ears as the five Cells formed a Destructo Disk in each hand. They threw them simultaneously at the still shocked Krillin. Gohan could only watch in horror as Krillin was cut into small pieces by his own attack, his blood pooling around where his feet had once been standing and staining Android 18's blonde hair crimson.

Piccolo charged as the five Cells once again merged into one destructive being. It stood smiling as it watched Piccolo charge. At the last second Cell quickly lifted its hand and decapitated the green alien with a single charged energy beam.

"My, this is growing tiresome." The android lifted both of its arms and pointed them at the two remaining Z Warriors.

Gohan watched in Horror as its arms lengthened and pierced through both Tien and Yamcha's chests. They died screaming in pain as their chests were ripped apart by the strength of the attack.

Cell once again disappeared and came into view standing above Gohan, its arm raised with purple energy swirling in its outstretched palm. "Now, you die, Gohan Son. You will now know what it feels like to be utterly defeated by a being superior to you in every way."

Purple light was the last thing he saw.

XvXvX

"FUCK!"

Gohan Brief sat in his bed, his sheets covered with a cold sweat and his right fist fully extended. It was still dark outside. Rubbing his palm against his forehead, Gohan peered over at a set of luminescent, green numbers. His alarm clock read 3:45 a.m. He had gotten two and a half hours of sleep tonight. That was about average. He had forgotten how long it had been since he had gotten a full eight hours or more of sleep. He had been plagued by nightmares during the night and memories during the day ever since the Cell games. His dreams always got progressively worse, as did his memories. He was only able to cope by completely shutting off his emotions, but it was still as if he were always living in a nightmare.

Getting out of his bed, Gohan stretched as he walked to his personal bathroom. With a large yawn, Gohan splashed his face with cold water a few times and grabbed a towel to dry the water off with. Putting his towel away, Gohan's eyes emotionlessly ran over the scars covering his chest and abdomen. Most were small and white with age. He had received few injuries of late that would warrant a scar. Training with Vegeta had been the reason for more than a few of them.

Shaking his head, the powerful Saiyan walked out of his bathroom and returned to his room to put on a pair of fighting gi pants. He had a few hours before school started so he may as well make use of the little time today he would have to train. Perhaps he could make Videl leave early so he could get some training time in as well. He could just push himself to the limit faster than usual. It was not like he had never done that before.

Walking into the gravity room silently, Gohan immediately switched the dial to 300.

XvXvX

"What's wrong with you, Videl? Looks like something is bothering you." Erasa looked at her friend sadly as she rested her head in her hand. "Is it your dad again?"

Videl huffed as she rolled her eyes at her best friend. Hercule was off on his business trip promoting the upcoming tournament. No, Videl's ire was targeted at someone else entirely.

"Nah, what he does when he's going around the world is his own business." Videl looked down at her desk and began to absentmindedly chew on the end of her pencil. "I learned a couple of years ago to stop getting so worked up over that. I'm just so mad about this new _hero_ that is getting in my way. People call him the Gold Fighter. He showed up yesterday and this morning and he's using the same tricks the people at the Cell Games used to beat the crooks before I can get to them."

"Sounds like a blessing to me." Erasa looked over her shoulder as Videl wrote a list of possible suspects. The raven-haired girl had been able to catch a look at Satan City's newest vigilante so she had been able to see his physical appearance fairly well. The list was short. "You won't be as busy, at least. Why is Gohan's name on there? From what I hear the Gold Fighter is more muscular, has no scars, and has flowing gold hair."

Videl looked at her friend with an odd look. She had not been able to get any information on the Gold Fighter, but she knew for a fact that Erasa had not seen him. Not a single person had been able to snap a picture of the mysterious man. He was too fast for cameras to detect or follow.

"How do you know that?"

"Easy. Kristen was there when he stopped the bank robbers yesterday." Erasa took a sharpie and crossed through Gohan's name, much to the displeasure of Videl. "Plus, Gohan is the newest craze with most of the girls around here since he's so mysterious. He's got that bad boy aura, too. Gohan couldn't be the Gold Fighter though. His appearance is way too different plus he doesn't seem like the type to go out of his way to fight crime. And he is way more talkative than the Gold Fighter."

Satan City's heroine began to once again chew on her pencil's eraser as she stared at the list in front of her. "What about those guys at the Cell Games? They could change their hair color, even if Dad said it was some cheap trick."

The blonde teenager sighed and rolled her deep blue eyes. "That group hasn't been heard from in years. Plus, your dad said that they all died. The Gold Fighter couldn't be one of them."

"You heard what Krillin said: 'They all prefer to remain hidden from the public's eyes'. I think he may know the people that fought against Cell. My father could be wrong about them being dead. I heard a few reports that there was no trace of them after Cell died. Krillin knows something that he's not telling anyone. Both Gohan and he are pretty suspicious."

"Now you're really going out on a limb, babe." Both girls shot Sharpener a glare, each for their own reason. "The possibility that Hercule is wrong about something like that is pretty damn low. Plus, Nerd Boy and Krillin don't do all of that flashy trick stuff. Sure, they're both really strong, but they didn't shoot lights out of their hands. And so what if they are shady? A lot of people have secrets, but that doesn't make them guilty of anything. You have no proof, Videl. I don't think they have anything to do with the Gold Fighter."

"I hate to say it, but Sharpener is right, Videl. You can't be suspicious of them until you get some proof that they have anything to do with the Gold Fighter." Erasa looked over at her blonde friend and glared at him heatedly. "And why do you insist on calling him 'Nerd Boy'? Gohan is a lot stronger than you! Hotter, too."

Videl rolled her eyes at both of her friends and turned her head to stare out the window.

The blonde male leaned back in his chair as he folded his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. "The kid got perfect scores on his entry exam. I don't care if the guy is stronger than me or not, that still makes him a nerd."

"Mr. Brief? Has anybody here seen Gohan Brief this morning? It is only his second day of high school and he is already missing a day."

All heads in the classroom turned as the door opened, revealing a very battered Gohan. All of them stared wide mouthed at the condition he was in. He was holding his left side and had bruises across his face and arms. The half-Saiyan was also limping slightly on his right side. He had not even bothered to bring a backpack to class.

"Mr. Brief? What happened to you? Why are you here? You need to see a doctor." His homeroom teacher rushed to him and began to attempt an evaluation of the teenager's injuries.

"I've already been taken care of. That's part of the reason I'm late. I will be fine." Gohan looked at the man and lied without any change in his facial expression. His face did not even show the excruciating amount of pain he was in. The only reason he kept his hand at his left side was so the wound would not reopen again.

"What happened to you, Mr. Brief? Do you need to call the police?"

"They have been notified. That is all you need to know." Gohan slowly walked his way up the stairs to sit in his seat. He immediately began to stare out the window as he thought about how far he had taken the morning's training, but if he hadn't have showed up to school Bulma would have had his head even if he had been injured. He had been in the healing tank for all of five minutes when he felt that several people were being injured by another group of people. He had barely had time to heal at all before he left to take care of the hostage situation at a retirement home. Fighting had reopened a few of his wounds.

"Hey, Gohan." Concerned cerulean eyes met cold black ones. "What the hell happened to you? You look terrible."

"Got mugged." Gohan, yet again, lied about what had happened to him, but he felt no negative emotions about doing so. "Got jumped from behind. Three of them."

"If you're so strong then how did they get the advantage on you? I'm sure that with your skill they wouldn't be able to land more than one punch before you took care of them." Videl quirked her eyebrow at the boy with a slight smirk lifting the corners of her mouth. Something was off about him, but what exactly was it? "It looks like you didn't fight back at all.

"I never said I didn't fight back, did I? I assure you they left the fight in worse condition than me." Gohan turn his icy stare out of the window, the tone in his voice sending small shivers down Videl's spine.

Cerulean eyes continued to stare at the enigma that was Gohan Brief. Videl was normally able to figure a boy out five minutes after she had met him, but the scarred teenager was different. His mind was a complete mystery to her. The teenage crime fighter felt as if she would never be able to figure him out.

Erasa shook her head as she watched her best friend from the corner of her eye. She could not figure out why she was so interested in Gohan. Yeah, the boy was handsome and had a killer body from what she had seen, but he was also cold and distant. The short-haired blonde would be lying if she said she was not interested in the boy, but Videl was going on borderline obsession. It was not healthy. Perhaps it had to do with that new crime fighter. Videl never did like it when people helped her with her work. She was too stubborn to let anybody help her.

"Yo, nerd boy." Sharpener eyed the teacher at the front of the room and saw that he was still in his own world with his lecture. Rolling his eyes, he turned his head that was cradled in his hands toward the addressed Saiyan.

"Hmm." Gohan was still staring out of the window, but he was not too lost in his thoughts to not hear what was going on around him.

"I want to invite you to our boxing club practice this afternoon." Gohan slightly twitched in annoyance, but he showed no other signs of replying to his peer. "I'm the best on the team and you leveled me pretty easily yesterday in the locker room after gym class. I know you would make an awesome boxer if you took the time to practice. I would be willing to bet that you could be the best in the country."

"No." His gaze never left the cloudy sky that reminded him of the funeral so many years ago. "I do not fight for sport on my own account. I know I am stronger than anybody in the boxing arena so there is no point for me to join."

Videl glared at the boy sitting next to her. His attitude often got on her nerves. "So what about the world tournament? The world's strongest fighters from all across the world show up on that one day. I'm sure that would be a challenge, even for you. After all, nobody has ever beaten my father."

"Your father has been beaten before. Did you not see the Cell Games before the broadcast cut off? The tournament is not worth my time." Gohan hated talking about the Games, but the talk of Hercule beating Cell annoyed him even more than the subject of the tournament itself.

"I saw the tape. My father slipped. The camera cut off midway through the fight with the Delivery Boy. My father jumped in and saved him at the last second. Everybody knows that." Videl's annoyance started to grow as she stared at the boy who refused to look in their direction. Half of the class had even perked up to Gohan's words.

The half-Saiyan rolled his eyes as his gaze shifted to some cars going down the street just outside. Why did he have to waste his time here? He could have been training. "Did you actually see that or is that what he says happened?"

"Are you calling my father a liar?" The city's heroine nearly stood up in her seat, but she held herself back at the last moment. The teacher may have been in his own little world, but he would have noticed an interruption like that.

"I'm just saying that he has no proof to match his story. I've been fighting a long time. I can tell the difference between somebody making an error during a fight and losing a fight while giving it their all. That was all I needed to see. You shouldn't always believe what you are told, even if it is from your own family. I'm sure if you search hard enough you will find the real tape of the Cell Games."

"What do you mean, 'the real tapes?'" Videl's interest perked up. Luckily, the rest of the students went back to daydreaming when they noticed Videl was not going to punch the new kid's lights out.

"There were companies out there whose satellites were able to keep recording the fight. I'm sure your father has a copy lying around somewhere. Might make him look bad if he didn't keep them from going public."

"Have you seen this tape?"

Gohan's eyes narrowed slightly as he thought about the tape that Bulma had hidden in one of her labs. The half-Saiyan had seen it many times after he had first come to live with the heiress. She had sent a copy of it to Hercule many years back as blackmail when he had been making press releases about the Cell Games and had been saying awful things about the Z Fighters. "Several times."

"What happened on these so-called 'real tapes' then?"

"I will not tell you. All you need to know is on that tape. Find it, and you will have all the answers you never had."

Videl kept staring at the back of Gohan's head and huffed when she realized the conversation was over. Truth be told, she had always had a slight disbelief that her father had actually been strong enough to beat the monster Cell, but she had never been given any proof to fully convince herself otherwise. She would have to find the tape and watch it. Gohan seemed to know something that she did not. How would that help anybody, though? Even if she saw it and Gohan was right she would not be able to tell anybody that Hercule had not, in fact, beaten Cell. Nobody would believe her. Actually, everybody would think that she had gone crazy. _'Just who the hell are you, Gohan Brief?'_

XvXvX

Gohan scowled as he walked up to the door to his next class. He had fallen asleep at lunch and was late. He had thought about taking off the rest of the day to train, but Bulma would have killed him if she had caught wind of his plan. _'Damn school and its phone policy. This is such a waste of my time.'_ He did not care what the teacher had to say. He just wanted the day to be done and over with. The young teen needed another hour or so in the healing pod before his wounds would fully heal. Thankfully, they had finally closed, making movement slightly less painful.

With a sigh, Gohan reached toward the door handle and was slightly surprised when it opened of its own accord. Looking in the classroom, Gohan was taken aback by what he saw. Three Saiyans in full armor were standing in front of the classroom, two of them he recognized. Somehow, Raditz and Nappa were standing in front of his class with their hands held toward the class. A swirling ball of red energy was in each of their hands. Just one of the energy balls held enough energy to level four square blocks of the city. He could not risk moving. Their energy levels were much higher than he had ever known them to be.

"Welcome to third period, Gohan. Come in and enjoy your fuckin' nightmare." The tallest of the three was the unknown Saiyan. Raditz was two inches taller than Gohan, but this Saiyan was at least four inches taller than his uncle.

Gohan walked into the classroom slowly and stared at the tallest Saiyan. His power level was monstrously strong. Stronger than his own, even. It saturated the air and made it difficult to breathe. It was thick and held a kind of evil that Gohan had never felt. His eyes, however, were more intimidating than his power. The Saiyan's coal black eyes held both a look of insanity and a look that made Gohan believe that he had been alive several lifetimes. He had short hair that spiked up slightly in the front above the rest of his hair. Scars covered his slender body and his armor looked worn from both age and countless battles. It had several gashes and chips in it. The right shoulder of his armor was torn nearly completely off. Little of it remained. His brown tail was wrapped comfortably around his waist as he stood with an insane sneer on his face.

"Who are you?" Gohan's still stoic eyes flitted from his uncle's to Nappa's. "What the hell are all of you doing here? You two are supposed to be dead."

"Where are my manners? It seems they have died over the countless centuries." The as of yet unnamed Saiyan tilted his head back and laughed heartily, although it sounded insane in Gohan's ears. The rest of the class stared ahead as if they were all soulless robots, seemingly unaffected by the things happening in front of them. "My name is Brota, to answer your first question. I am the _true_ King of the Saiyan race and my power is unrivaled throughout all known dimensions. Some call me the 'The Destroyer of Worlds', but I prefer the title of the 'One True Super Saiyan'. As for these two, they are still dead. I just wanted them here for some dramatic effect."

"Make one move and this entire city will go up in flames." Nappa smirked as he poured more energy into his palm.

"Now, now, Nappa. Gohan here isn't going to make a single move under my watch, that much I will assure. There is no need to be rude." Brota's sinister eyes flitted across the class, which was still sitting calmly. "Now, where to start."

Rage coursed through Gohan's veins as the demented Saiyan's eyes scanned the three people in the entire school that actually tried talking to him. He knew that Brota would pick out the people that he was closest to, even if that closeness was actually about as far apart as two countries.

"Why are you here?" The demi-Saiyan tried to take a step forward, but he found that he could not move any muscles other than those in his neck and head.

"Oh, me? I am not here… yet. This is only a dream, but I am showing you what is to come." Brota continued to speak as he slowly walked up the right side of the classroom. "It will take me some time to reach you. Your planet holds two things that I want. I want to take back what is rightfully mine and to bring the Saiyan race back to its rightful position in the universe. You see, I have been waiting for so long and I believe that I will finally be able to restore the Saiyan race's honor that was destroyed by the Vegeta dynasty. It will take me a bit more time to accomplish this goal, but I have waited so long that it seems like just a blink of the eye to me."

Gohan's eyes continued to follow him as Brota reached down and roughly pulled Videl Satan up by her throat. Her body seemed to spring back into life as she struggled against the Saiyan's impossibly strong grip.

"You didn't answer my question. Why don't you get a bit more specific?"

"I'm afraid I can't… Well… to be more honest it is more like I won't. You will see with your own eyes what I plan to do when the time is right. I have been watching you a long time, Gohan Brief. You see, taking back the throne is not enough for me. I need to have a challenge in taking it back and I believe you are the only one who will be able to provide me with that. I believe that someone will be coming to Earth very soon to help you get stronger. I believe he will be at that pathetic excuse of a tournament your planet holds. Now I would like you to watch as the life slowly slips out of your friend's eyes."

Gohan tried to move again, but his body remained motionless besides his eyes being forcibly moved to look into Videl's eyes. What the hell was happening? He had no control over his body. He tried to shut his eyes as he saw the human's eyes begin to cloud over, leaving only a look of intense fear covering her face. It was happening again. Even though he felt no emotional connection to the girl in general, he had failed to protect her. He had failed yet again. Laughter filled his ears when Videl's body became slack and was thrown to the ground callously. Gohan stared at the heaped body lying motionless on the floor and his vision became red.

Gaining control over his body once again, Gohan charged toward the tall Saiyan. Laughter filled his ears once again as Raditz charged forward and kneed him in the stomach before a bright flash of white light filled his vision.

XvXvX

"NOOOO!"

Every student in the classroom whipped their heads around at the noise and stared at Gohan with slightly wide and confused eyes. Their boring class had been interrupted by the loud yell that had no reason to be there in the first place. Gohan felt their eyes on him, but he ignored the stares as he glanced down to his bleeding palms.

"Is there a problem, Mr. Brief?"

"No… No problem. Just a dream." The boy in question continued to look down at his hands as the teacher sent a glare in his direction.

"Just see that you don't fall asleep again. The next time this happens I'm afraid you will have to go to the principal's office."

Gohan nodded slightly before the teacher turned around and began to teach once again. The students in the classroom continued to stare at him for a few more seconds before they turned back around and began to doodle or daydream as they had been doing before.

'_What the hell was that? The dream was so vivid, but it couldn't have been true. Raditz and Nappa are dead. Vegeta is the only full-blooded Saiyan left alive. We killed Brolly and Turles. His story was way too far-fetched. Saiyans don't have the mental capacity to use psychic abilities like that. No Saiyan can insert himself in someone's dream. Then how could I feel his power? How could I feel Nappa and Raditz's power? This doesn't make any sense at all. Any time I dream it's always of Cell or Frieza. I've never even seen that guy before. It all felt so real, though. I guess I should just ignore it. My imagination is getting the better of me. If it was my imagination, then why does my gut tell me to be careful? I guess I should just train until I knock myself out tonight. That should calm my nerves a bit. Or maybe all I need is a full night's sleep. It has been a few months since I've had one.'_

"Gohan, you need to go to the nurse's office. Your hands are bleeding." Videl's nose scrunched up in disgust as several droplets of blood hit the desk underneath his hands.

The young Saiyan warrior nodded slightly as he stood from his desk and began to walk toward the door, small droplets of blood hitting the ground underneath him with every step. The teacher turned from his board to scold the boy, but remained speechless when he saw the condition of his hands. The only noise heard in the entire classroom before the door closed behind Gohan was the slightly exasperated sigh that escaped his lips.

XnXnX

"You've been dreaming again, haven't you, Gohan?" Krillin stared at the blood-soaked bandages that wrapped around Gohan's hands. The blood had long since crusted and turned brown with the passing hours, but the young Saiyan had not yet removed them.

"How can you tell?" The Saiyan in question only continued to stare out the window of the older man's office as he spoke. Gohan had no idea why he had come to Krillin's office, but he did know that for some reason the dream he had earlier in the day was still bothering him. He knew that something was not right.

Krillin sighed as he shuffled a few papers around on his desk to keep his hands occupied. "The bags under your eyes are worse than they were three years ago. Bulma gave you medicine to help stop the dreams a long time ago. Have you told her that they have come back?"

"No."

Gohan hoped that Krillin's questioning would end soon, but he knew it would not. He had come to talk to his father's friend, but he found himself not able to find the right words to say. The Saiyan did not want to appear weak. It was a situation he had found himself in many times in the past few years.

"Why haven't you told her?"

"Bulma already worries enough about me. It is not right for me to add more stress on her than I already do."

Several minutes passed by with Krillin staring at Gohan and the younger male continuing to stare out the window. Gohan pondered Krillin's question quietly, but he could find no answer more right than the one he had already given.

"You won't tell her," Gohan commanded more than requested.

"No, I won't." Krillin sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "You know she would do anything for you, Gohan?"

A few more moments passed between the two in silence before Gohan nodded in affirmation.

"But I know you didn't come here to talk about Bulma. What's on your mind?"

"My latest dream." Krillin's eyebrow quirked at Gohan's quick reply. He had never shared his dreams with anyone other than Bulma, and she had not told any of the Z Warriors what he had told her. "It was not normal. Most of my dreams deal with my mistake during the Cell Games, or with Frieza. This one was… different. I was in my classroom. Nappa and Raditz were both there, and there was a Saiyan named Brota there as well. He told me he was coming to Earth because he wanted to bring the Saiyans back to their rightful place in the galaxy and to rule over them. Then there was an explosion and I woke up."

Krillin once again looked down at Gohan's hands. "I guess that explains the bandages. It sounds like a normal nightmare to me, Gohan. Raditz and Nappa did a lot of terrible things and you witnessed them as a young boy. I don't know anything about this Brota character. I'd be willing to bet your mind made him up. We both know there are no more Saiyans left in the galaxy other than Vegeta, Trunks, and you."

Gohan shook his head at the veteran fighter. "I came to the same conclusion at first, Krillin. I've thought about this all day. Normally, in my dreams I cannot physically feel anything. The only thing I feel is the emotional turmoil my 'dream-self' is having at the moment. This was completely different. I could feel all of their power levels. I could feel Brota's presence, his power. It was overwhelming. I could feel him inside my mind while I was dreaming. I felt… fear. I could hear him just as I can hear you now. It was… unnerving."

Sitting back in his chair, Krillin thought to himself for a few moments. "That is strange stuff, Gohan. I honestly don't know what to tell you. I've never experienced anything quite like that. The best thing I can tell you is not to worry about it for now. If it happens again then we should go see Dende about it."

"That seems to be the best course of action," Gohan replied after a few moments of consideration.

Nodding at the older man, Gohan left Krillin's office to return home for the night.

XnXnX

Gohan sighed as he thought about what Krillin had said during their conversation. A walk through Satan City had done nothing to ease his nerves. As much as the young Saiyan had tried to ignore his instincts, he could not. The cloudy sky above him did little to soothe his nervousness as well. Its haze only served to remind him of Videl's cloudy eyes as Brota mercilessly squeezed the life out of her. True, it was only a dream, but the fact remained that he was once again forced to helplessly watch as another person died. It was something he could not accept, even if it was not real.

Uneasiness soon turned into irritation as he turned onto the street he lived on. _'What the hell is wrong with me? It was just a stupid dream. Videl may have died in my dream, but it's not like anything like that would happen in real life, right? Right… Dammit, I'm supposed to train her today. She probably won't be there considering I'm over two hours late. Just means it gives me more time to train myself after I heal the rest of my wounds. Before I do that, though, I'll give Vegeta a call and ask him about that Brota character. Vegeta will call me an idiot for worrying and it will prove that this was just a stupid dream.'_

"You're late, Brief." Videl Satan looked at her watch as she leaned against the door of Gohan's Satan City home. "Two hours, thirty-six minutes, and seventeen seconds late, actually. I, on the other hand, was on time."

Gohan heard the unasked "Where the hell were you?", but chose to ignore it. Instead he jerked his head to the side as he laid his left thumb on a fingerprint scanner beside the door. Said door instantly slid open before Videl had a chance to understand Gohan's nonverbal command, causing her to fall through the door she had previously been leaning on. Sighing, the teenage Saiyan stepped over her and into the house before the door shut and locked itself once more.

"Why were you so late?" Videl had quickly recovered from her stumble and was now walking behind Gohan down unknown hallways at a very quick pace.

"I needed to ask a friend a few questions about something that concerned me. Before you ask, it is no business of yours." Gohan's monotone voice gave no indication of the irritation that was coursing through his body while Videl asked what he believed to be highly personal questions.

"Was it about the dream you had during class?" Videl stumbled to keep up with Gohan's quick pace as he made a sudden left turn down another long hallway. The young crime fighter knew this house was modeled after Bulma's own house in West City, but she had no idea that it was more of a maze than an actual house.

"No."

"Oh… Well then what was your dream about, if you don't mind me asking? You showed more emotion when you snapped awake than any other time I've been around you."

Gohan stopped at a door and keyed in a number sequence faster than Videl could make out. The door opened, revealing a large, circular room. They both stepped inside, revealing that the entire room was painted white and it contained nothing more than a singular machine in the middle of it. Videl looked around while Gohan busied himself with the machine in the middle.

"I do mind you asking about my personal business. Please stay out of it. That is the last time I will tell you." Gohan walked away from the machine, allowing Videl to see a blinking "2g" on a small panel in the middle of it. "I hope you prepared last night. This room will be the source of the largest amount of pain you have ever felt in your life."

A sinister smirk crept onto Gohan's face that made Videl internally squirm.

"And I will help cause some of that pain, as well."

Videl looked around herself for a few seconds before turning to Gohan with a frown. "It looks like a normal room to me, Brief. Are we going to spar?"

A monotone chuckle escaped Gohan's lips.

"Something funny?" Videl scowled at the muscular boy in front of her with her hands on her hips.

"You are a long way from that sort of training." Gohan looked around the room with a slight scowl as he remembered his many years of pain inside it. "This room, along with a few other functions that are beyond your skill level, can manipulate Earth's gravity. The lowest it can go is one times Earth's normal gravity."

Videl looked at the machine in the middle of the room in awe. She had no idea that Bulma could have invented a machine like this.

"Why hasn't Mrs. Brief sold this product to the public?"

"Most of her experiments, while complete, do not get released to the public. She makes most of her inventions for use for family and friends only. Also, it is impossible to mass produce and only a few people have the mental capacity to know how to fix it. It would cost more to sell than she could actually sell it for." Gohan turned his piercing stare toward Videl, making her once again feel as if he were staring directly into her soul. "You are not to tell anybody about this room in any capacity. If you do, and I will know if you do, then all training will immediately cease. Do you agree?"

"Yes."

Gohan smiled slightly as he looked at a clear panel directly above them. "That camera's audio function just recorded your agreement. I am required by Capsule Corp. policy to inform you that if you break this agreement you and your family may be held liable in a court of law for breaking a Capsule Corp. statute of secrecy."

"How come you don't get in trouble?"

"Pays being family, doesn't it?"

Videl snorted as she silently steamed over Gohan's cheap trick. She would now have to find a way to lie to her friends about tonight's training.

"How high does the gravity go in this thing?"

"It goes high enough to instantly crush all the bones in your body and kill you." Gohan noticed the slightly green tint to Videl's face, but showed no outward reaction to it. "That reminds me… you need to know the rules of the gravity room and my training. First, you do not touch the controls at the center of the room unless I tell you to, and I doubt I ever will. You will only do what I instruct you to do. Any mistake you make in here can easily injure or kill you. Do not question my orders. Do not complain. Do not be late. Tell me if you feel like you are about to suffer an injury. I do not want you to be stupid and hurt yourself. If I come up with any more rules I will immediately let you know. Am I clear?"

Videl nodded slowly as she stared at the still blinking "2g" on the control panel of the gravity room. "So this is how you hurt yourself this morning. You didn't get mugged did you?"

Gohan shook his head. "I can't very well let the world know that I have a room to train in that manipulates gravity, can I? Living with my life comes with many secrets and lies. This is just one of them."

"Why do you train to the point that it destroys your body?"

"It's how I make both my mind and body stronger. Get yourself in a solid stance. You're about to feel your weight double." Gohan walked over to the control panel and pressed a red button. After a few seconds of whirring Videl felt her weight double and she nearly stumbled to the ground. "Bulma has ways of making me heal faster. It was an experiment she did because of how far I take my training. It can't be mass produced because each machine has to be specific to the person's DNA. Again, you cannot say anything about that, either."

Videl nodded, oblivious to Gohan's lie. She was too busy concentrating on staying upright with the sudden gravity change to contemplate anything Gohan had said.

"What gravity level do you train at?"

"High enough to crush the bones in your body and kill you."

Videl tried to punch and kick the air in front of her a few times, but her attacks seemed so slow to her eyes. She was slowly acclimating to the higher gravity.

"When you fought Krillin yesterday neither of you was at full strength, were you?"

The Saiyan warrior shook his head in the negative and watched as Videl continued to punch and kick the air. He noticed a bit of perspiration begin to accumulate above her brow and decided against turning up the gravity even more.

"That means you are stronger than my father doesn't it?" Gohan nodded. "I want to see how strong you are. I want to know the strength of the person training me. I have to know."

"If I show you then you cannot tell anybody."

Videl nodded and Gohan went over to the control panel. After pressing a few buttons that seemed completely random to Videl a hidden panel slid open on the side opposite from where they had entered.

"Go in there and you will be able to see and hear everything. Keep this in mind, though: if you tell anybody how strong I am they will not believe you. You will not be breaking any statutes of secrecy, but I take my secrets very seriously. If you tell anybody then I will have to take you and everybody else that knows to a place that you will never be able to return from. I know many of those places."

It was an empty threat, but Gohan had to make sure she did not tell anybody. He could tell before she nodded that she was scared into believing him. After the door closed Gohan slowly walked over to the control panels and once again began pushing buttons that seemed random to Videl.

Whirring came from all around Gohan and the lights in the room began to tint red, but the young Saiyan remained seemingly unaffected. Videl watched with great interest when Gohan began to walk. She could tell that the gravity affected him, but it did not greatly hinder him. Satan City's heroine went slack-jawed when she saw the panel read a steady "300g".

Looking back up, she saw Gohan doing back-handsprings around the gravity room. She could tell he was not trying as hard as he could, but she summed it up to his injuries. On his last back-handspring Gohan landed on his hands and began to do push-ups. After fifty seemingly easy pushups, Gohan pushed off the ground with his hands and landed back on his feet before he walked back to the gravity machine and reset the gravity to normal settings.

"So you're really strong… A… lot stronger…than my dad." Videl walked out the panel and back into the room after Gohan opened it. "Can you move fast and do the light tricks the Gold Fighter can do?"

"Yeah, I can."

"So you're the Gold Fighter, then. I knew I was right. I'm gonna rub it in Erasa's pretty little face tomorrow at school."

"No." Gohan turned away from the control panel and walked toward Videl. "I am not the Gold Fighter, but he was a good friend of mine before the Cell Games. He is much more powerful than I am."

"So the Gold Fighter beat Cell."

"Find the tape and watch it. It will give you all the answers you need."

"So how do you do the light tricks?"

Gohan scowled at the girl in front of him. "They are not tricks. It's energy that comes from inside your body. You harness it, you control it, and you fight with it. It is very real."

"So if it is real then you can teach me how to use it."

"Yes." Gohan's face started twitching when Videl began to smile like she was about to burst. "But not right now. First, we need to increase your strength and stamina so you can handle learning how to use energy. Your body must be able to handle the increase in energy your body will undergo when you learn to control it."

"Then how are we going to do that?"

Gohan walked over to the control panel in the middle of the room and pressed a few more seemingly random buttons, opening another panel in the room to reveal a training gi.

"You will wear that gi while you are here." Videl looked at the suit cockily, her face falling with Gohan's next few words. "It is weighted. It weighs fifty pounds. You will wear the arm and ankle bands outside of this room at all times. They weigh fifteen pounds apiece. Later, I will have the weight of each of these items increased slightly."

"That's impossible!" Videl stared wide-eyed at the gi and bands. "How do you expect me to wear that in here when I already weigh twice as much as normal?"

"I've done it and my father has done it." Gohan crossed his arms much like Piccolo had done with him on several occasions. "Do not question my orders and do not complain. Remember the rules? Now for your warm-up. You'll start with one hundred push-ups, two hundred body squats, three hundred situps, and fifty laps around the gravity room. I will be meditating, but I will know if you cheat. If I catch you cheating then this training is over. I have no time to train a slacker. I will turn my back while you get changed. After you are changed then you can start. This will be more painful than any other training you have been through before. Welcome to your fuckin' nightmare."

XvXvX

**A/N:** I know it's kind of a boring chapter, but it is important in that it sets up some events that will happen next chapter and later down the road. Please review and tell me what you think! Thanks for your support!


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